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As new COVID-19 infections are once again on the rise in Canadian long-term care homes, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said that more support from the Red Cross will soon be deployed to “a number” of facilities, and he plans to soon talk to the premiers about implementing a national standard of care.
“Seniors must be safe and well-cared for, and our government stands ready to help provincial counterparts in that work,” Trudeau said on Tuesday.
Over the weekend, Public Safety Minister Bill Blair announced that the federal government had approved an Ontario government request for the Red Cross to help out in seven long-term care homes in the Ottawa region.
The details of the deployment are still being worked out, but it’s possible that the Red Cross will — as they have in other regions — be providing personal care and daily assistance services, advising on epidemic prevention and control, and organizing and delivering personal protective equipment.
“No Canadian wants to see their parents, their grandparents, their loved ones not well cared for in facilities across the country. I don’t think there should be some regions of the country that offer better or worse protections to elders than others,” Trudeau said, adding that he’ll be bringing up the topic of “harmonizing” the expectations of care inside these facilities during what will be his 20th COVID-19-focused meeting with all premiers, on Thursday.
As part of the September throne speech, the federal Liberals pledged to set national standards for long-term care, despite it generally being under provincial and territorial jurisdiction.
Intergovernmental Affairs Minister Dominic LeBlanc said that while it’s not a file under federal jurisdiction, “I would think provinces share the outrage and the concern that Canadians have about the potential for devastating consequences in these long-term care homes.”
“If provinces are prepared to do more, were prepared to work with them including financially, but the key thing is for everybody to agree on a basic national standard that Canadians can rely on,” he said.
LeBlanc said it has been a “chronic” challenge to recruit staff to work in some facilities, and that’s where these contracted out Red Cross staff can temporarily help.
“It’s not a long term solution… but its something we can do immediately that provides an immediate relief and were happy to do so,” he said.
Chief Public Health Officer Dr. Theresa Tam said a standardized approach is just one layer of protection, and in the cases of seniors’ homes, many other measures are needed to keep COVID-19 at bay, such as appropriate training and support for staff.
Tam said that while some long-term care homes have managed quite well, others are on their second or third outbreak.
“You need to have enough information, which happens at the local level, as to which institutions or facilities or homes or residences do you really need to pay particular attention to,” she said. “My key message is that having seen what we’ve seen in the first wave, the top priority, really key priority, is to protect seniors and long-term care.”
The latest national COVID-19 modelling, released on Friday, showed a “concerning rise” in new cases among individuals 80 years of age and older, who are at the highest risk of severe outcomes. It also indicated that the number of reported outbreaks in long-term care and retirement residences were up from the summer.
The Public Health Agency of Canada’s most recent pandemic projections stated that “rapid detection and response to outbreaks remain key to preventing spread in at risk populations.”
Experts have been calling on the government to hire more trained workers for long-term care homes, warning that low numbers could increase the risk of infection.
During the first wave of the pandemic in the spring, Canadian military members were deployed to long-term care homes in Quebec and Ontario, with Trudeau pledging it would not be a long-term solution.
During a press conference on Tuesday morning, Trudeau also said that the already-announced, newly-approved rapid COVID-19 tests will “shortly” be sent to the provinces and territories, as the federal government continues to help Ontario triage its backlog of processing COVID-19 tests.
It remains to be seen in what settings these rapid tests will be deployed, though health officials have stated that they could be most effective in facilities or businesses where an outbreak has been detected or to prevent an outbreak in high-risk settings.
LeBlanc said long-term care homes could be one place where these new rapid test kits would be effective.
“With rising COVID-19 cases, quick and accurate testing deployed with the right strategy has become more important than ever,” Trudeau said.
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