Thank you so much to everyone who joined our Facebook live session last night. We appreciated your engagement and the insights you shared from the frontlines. If you missed it, you can still catch the replay here.
1. Allow HCC providers to conduct assessments of clients before entering their homes, which will allow providers to choose the most appropriate PPE based on that assessment.
2. Deploy PPE to HCC providers on a priority basis.
3. Require that any appearance of respiratory issues among HCC clients is immediately treated as a suspected COVID-19 case, so that the appropriate precautions are taken to minimize spread.
4. Ensure testing is prioritized and fast-tracked for HCC providers and their clients
We will continue to fight to make sure all nurses and health professionals have the supplies and tools you need to provide safe care!
Webinar for Managing COVID-19 Symptoms at End of Life Our colleagues from Hospice Palliative Care Ontario are hosting three webinars on Managing Respiratory Symptoms of COVID-19 at End-of-Life – A Primer for Front Line Staff. The purpose of these sessions is to improve comfort level of front-line staff in supporting patients & residents at end-of-life related to respiratory illness.
There are three separate sessions, each geared towards different care settings: Long-Term Care (April 20), Community (April 22), and Hospital (April 24). Learn more and Register Here
Urgent Jobs During COVID-19 The Ontario Long Term Care Association has launched a new job matching program for nurses and other staff interested supporting residents in LTC. Paid opportunities are also available for qualified nursing students.
The Provincial Government is helping recruit health care workers through their new portal and match them with opportunities. Health Force Ontario continues to recruit health professionals.
We encourage RPNs looking for employment opportunities to sign up on all the platforms noted above.
Key Provincial Updates and Resources for Health Professionals Today, the Ontario government announcedthat they have significantly expanded hospital capacity
in preparation for any COVID-19 outbreak scenario by adding 1,035 acute care beds and 1,492 critical care beds.
Following yesterday's Long Term Care announcement, the Ministry has released several updated documents including:
A Memo was issued from the Deputy Ministers of Health and Long Term Care, Chief Medical Officer and CEO of Ontario Heath regarding additional support for Long Term Care Homes (LTCHs) and Retirement Homes (RH).
Key Federal Updates The Prime Minister announced more measures to support Canadian businesses, including expanded loan eligibility and assistance with commercial rent. Details available here
For more information, we encourage you to visit theGovernment of Canada website.
Daily Reports As of 10:30AM today, Ontario reported 8,961confirmed cases (increase of 514), 4,194 resolved cases, 423 deaths and 4,323 currently under investigation with lab results pending.
The Ministry is now also reporting that 807 patients are hospitalized with COVID-19, 248 are in ICU and 200 are vented. To view these additional details: click here Click Hereto read the latest Ministry of Health Daily Report **Please note, these reports are intended for health professionals only and we request that you not share
this with the public.
World Health Organization Situation Reports are also available here
In the News For an interactive map tracking all cases across Canada and internationally, click here
Below are some key stories from today that may be of interest to our members:
We will continue to monitor this situation and keep you updated as more information becomes available. Thank you for the important work that you're doing and the sacrifices you're making to keep Ontarians safe. We appreciate everything that you're doing each and every day.
Should you have any questions or concerns, please contact Tiff Blair at tblair@werpn.com
Sincerely,
WeRPN Team
WeRPN 5025 Orbitor Drive Building 5, Suite 200 Mississauga, Ontario L4W 4Y5
