We are also continuing to highlight our calls to action to government through ongoing engagement. Last week, our CEO participated in a pre-budget meeting with Ontario's Minister of Finance and urged government to take action on our recommendations:
Continue the swift rollout of COVID-19 vaccines so healthcare workers and residents/patients are protected, with immediatepriority given to those who are most at risk or in high-risk settings.
Create more full-time positions for nurses and ensure RPNs are fairly compensated for the integral work that they do.
Enhance retention of the nursing workforce by creating more opportunities for continuing education and career advancement.
Enhance mental health supports for nurses and their fellow healthcare workers, specifically, to address the significant mentaland emotional toll brought on by COVID-19, which will linger long after the pandemic is over.
Leverage the unique experience and expertise of nurses on the front lines by ensuring that their voices are foundational to any future consultations and decision making on healthcare reform and policy in Ontario.
Key Provincial Updates and Resources for Health Professionals
Today, Ontario announced that ongoing vaccine delays and reduced shipments have forced the Ontario government to update its goal of completing the administration of first doses of COVID-19 vaccines to residents in each long-term care, high-risk retirement and First Nations elder care home to February 10.
Yesterday, the Minister of Education announced an additional $381 million in funding for school boards to improve school safety during COVID-19. Funding will be used to improve air quality and ventilation in schools, support online learning, promote student mental health, and hire additional staff. This funding is the second installment to be provided through the federal Safe Return to Class Fund. The first installment was announced in August 2020.
Last Friday, the government unveiled a six-point plan to stop the spread of new COVID-19 variants in Ontario. The plan includes mandatory on-arrival testing of international travellers, as well as enhanced screening and sequencing to identify new variants.
Ontario’s six-point plan to stop the spread of new variants includes the following pillars:
1. Mandatory on-arrival testing of international travelers. This requirement will come into effect at noon on Monday, February 1, at Toronto Pearson International Airport. Those who refuse to be tested will receive a $750 ticket. The government is also exploring additional testing measures which can be implemented at land border crossings in the coming weeks.
2. Enhanced screening and sequencing in order to screen all positive COVID-19 tests for known variants within two to three days. This measure will take effect beginning Wednesday, February 3. By February 17, Public Health Ontario will also undertake genomic sequencing of up to 10% of all positive tests, in order to identify new and emerging variants.
3. Maintain public health measures. Given the evidence that the variants of concern are more transmissible, the lifting of public health measures will not be considered until more information on variant spread is known and overall trends in public health indicators improve.
4. Strengthen case and contact management. The provincial workforce will continue supporting public health units to reach cases and contacts as soon as possible. In addition, all asymptomatic contacts will be asked to repeat testing on or after day 10 of their quarantine, and the entire household of all contacts and symptomatic individuals will be asked to stay home until the contact has a negative test.
5. Accelerate the vaccination of residents in long-term care, high-risk retirement, and First Nations elder care homes. In order to enhance protections for vulnerable populations, the province will expanding rapid testing in high priority settings, including long-term care homes, retirement homes, essential workplaces, schools, and congregate living settings.
6. Establish a genomics databank and real-time analytics. This measure will entail working with Ontario-based DNAstack, to improve planning related to the pandemic response.
On Friday, the government announced new measures to discourage intertional travel. The government has introduced new requirements for returning travellers. Travellers must now:
take a COVID-19 molecular test on arrival at their own cost;
reserve a room in a Government of Canada-approved hotel for three nights at their own cost, while they await their test results.
Travellers are still required to complete a mandatory 14-day quarantine.
The Chief Public Health Officer's statement for February 1st is available here
For more information, we encourage you to visit the Government of Canada website.
Daily
Reports
As of 10:30AM today, Ontario reported 270,925 confirmed cases (increase of 745**), 247,236 resolved cases, 6,238 deaths.
The Ministry is also reporting that 1,192 patients are hospitalized with COVID-19, 341 are in ICU and 253 are vented. To view these additional details:click here
Click Hereto read the latest Ministry of Health Daily Report
World Health Organization Situation Reports are also available here
** note Toronto public health unit updated their database resulting in adjustments to numbers for today.
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
