Hope your week is off to a great start! We want to thank all the nurses who have shared photos and messages with us about receiving their nursing week care packages. We know some members have yet to receive
their packages, so we want to assure you they are on the way! UPS continues to deliver packages to nurses across the province. If you are a RPN member with us and haven't received yours yet, it should be arriving by next week.
Resumption of Health Services The Government's updated Directive #2 offers guidance to health care providers on the resumption of non-essential health services, along with the supplemental document, Operational Requirements for Health Sector Restart. We encourage foot care nurses and other nurses in
independent practice to refer to these documents to guide your practice as you consider resuming services.
Key Provincial Updates and Resources for Health Professionals Today, the government announced it is investing in local manufacturers to support the expansion of PPE production.
The Ontario government announced that it has enacted a new regulatory amendment that will put non-unionized employees on Infectious Disease Emergency Leave during the COVID-19 outbreak any time their hours of work are temporarily reduced by their employer due to COVID-19. This will ensure businesses aren't forced to terminate employees after their ESA temporary layoff periods have expired.
Late last week, the governmentannounced the implementation of the next phase of the COVID-19 testing strategy to detect and quickly stop the spread of the virus. Testing will now be available to more people in more locations across the province. This phase of the testing plan is outlined in the document Protecting Ontarians Through Enhanced Testing.
Key Federal Updates Yesterday, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced that the federal government will be offering cities an advanced transfer of $2.2 billion in infrastructure money to help cover COVID-19-prompted budget
shortfalls.
The Federal government has also announced new investments to support Canada's tourism industry.
Last week, the Federal government announced that cruise ships with overnight accommodations carrying more than 100 people will be prohibited from operating in Canadian waters until Oct. 31.
For more information, we encourage you to visit theGovernment of Canada website.
Daily Reports
As of 10:30AM today, Ontario reported 28,709confirmed cases (increase of 446), 22,484resolved cases, 2,2293 deaths and 10,622currently under investigation with lab results pending.
The Ministry is also reporting that 801 patients are hospitalized with COVID-19, 125 are in ICU and 87 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
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 Tiff Blair at tblair@werpn.com
Sincerely,
WeRPN Team
WeRPN 5025 Orbitor Drive Building 5, Suite 200 Mississauga, Ontario L4W 4Y5