Doctors urging Province end “humanitarian crisis” in Ontario’s long-term care facilities

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Published January 29, 2021 at 1:35 am

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Ontario doctors are calling on the Province to protect residents of long-term care facilities that have been ravaged by COVID-19.

Since the onset of the pandemic, the majority of deaths in Ontario have been residents of long-term care facilities—something the Ontario Medical Association described as a “humanitarian crisis.”

“We cannot allow this deplorable situation to continue one minute longer,” Samantha Hill, president of the OMA, said in a news release.

“The vaccine supply is beyond our control, but there are many other effective initiatives we must take immediately to safeguard our most vulnerable,” she continued.

In order to do so, the OMA is urging the Province to provide paid sick days to all employees, including those in long-term care, in order to avoid scenarios where they must choose between staying home to prevent spreading the virus, and going to work to earn enough money to survive.

The OMA is also urging the Province to mandate long-term care facilities to implement a screening program for staff and visitors that includes the rapid antigen test, which detects people who are not yet showing symptoms of COVID-19.

“Societies are judged by how they treat their elders and most vulnerable members,” Allan O’Dette, CEO of the OMA, said in the same release.

“History will judge us poorly unless we all move quickly, within our areas of authority and expertise, to improve conditions in long-term care homes,” he continued.

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