There's less than one week left to nominate a passionate and engaged RPN to join our Board of Directors. We are accepting nominations for Region 2, Region 4, Region 6 and a Member at Large. Click here for more details. Nominations due July 15th.
Do you know an incredible RPN leader who should be celebrated? Help us showcase excellence in nursing by nominating some outstanding RPNs for our Awards of Excellence. We're acception nominations across 5 categories. Nominations due July 24th. Learn more at werpn.com/awards
Key Provincial Updates and Resources for Health Professionals
Today, the Ontario government extended all emergency orders currently in force under the Emergency Management and Civil Protection Act until July 22, 2020. The extension was made to ensure the province maintains the necessary flexibility to protect public health and safety as it continues to gradually reopen. Yesterday, the Ontario government introduced the COVID-19 Economic Recovery Act, an omnibus bill of COVID-19 recovery measures that proposes changes to 20 pieces of current legislation. The
proposed legislation aims to support Ontario’s economic recovery from COVID-19 in three priority areas:
Restarting jobs and development – ensuring that infrastructure projects are built faster and attracting jobs and investment to the province while cutting red tape for businesses;
Strengthening communities – ensuring municipalities have the tools and funds to continue delivering services to residents;
Creating opportunity – Protecting consumers, modernizing services, improving the education system, and removing social and economic barriers standing in the way of success for young people.
Earlier yesterday, the Ontario government also announced a partnership with DriverCheck to pilot a system that will make it easier for truck drivers to access COVID-19 testing. The pilot program will allow truck drivers to access voluntary testing on a
first-come, first-served basis at locations where there is a high volume of truck traffic.
Key Federal Updates Yesterday, Finance Minister Bill Morneau delivered an Economic and
Fiscal Snapshot in the House of Commons in order to update Canadians on federal spending and economic projections linked to the government’s response to COVID-19. The snapshot included updates on the GDP decline, debt-to-GDP ratio, benefit claims and job losses, noting the deficit for 2020-21 is expected to rise to $343.2 billion from the $34.4 billion deficit projected before the pandemic. The Canadian economy is projected to shrink
by 6.8 per cent this year before bouncing back by 5.5 per cent next year, making this crisis the worst economic contraction since the Great Depression. The COVID-19 pandemic also marks the first time that Canada’s debt has reached the $1 trillion mark. Canada’s COVID-19 Economic Response allocated $5.8 billion to health care spending. This included preparing and expanding the health system for services such as virtual care and COVID-19 testing, as well as procuring personal protective equipment and supplies such as ventilators. There has also been a focus on medical research and vaccine development to
accelerate made-in-Canada innovation as a countermeasure to the virus. For more information, we encourage you to visit theGovernment of Canada website.
Daily Reports
As of 10:30AM today, Ontario reported 36,348 confirmed cases (increase of 170), 31,977 resolved cases, 2,703 deaths and 21,648 currently under investigation with lab results pending.
The Ministry is also reporting that 123 patients are hospitalized with COVID-19, 31 are in ICU and 23 are vented. To view these additional details: click here
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 encourage RPNs looking for employment opportunities to sign up on all the platforms noted above.
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 us at info@werpn.com
Sincerely,
WeRPN Team
WeRPN 5025 Orbitor Drive Building 5, Suite 200 Mississauga, Ontario L4W 4Y5
