RNAO Updates

The official counting of deaths is just a fraction of the real toll of COVID-19 in about every country affected by the pandemic. The New York Times, doing important work, found at that least 60,000 more people have died during the coronavirus pandemic than the official Covid-19 death counts report, a review of mortality data in 15 countries shows — providing a clearer, if still incomplete, picture of the toll of the crisis.

Daria Gefrerer is a nurse practitioner who helps oversee Sunnybrook’s COVID-19 Assessment Centre. Up until March 16, Gefrerer was a nurse in the hospital’s birthing unit, taking care of mothers and families during labour, delivery and their postpartum stay.

Social distancing means being isolated from loved ones, separated from social networks, and having to make tough decisions, like which sibling would visit a dying parent. It also means huge adjustments in the way that care is being offered. In the community, most in-person visits have been cancelled and replaced by virtual care.

Today is National Doctors’ Day and RNAO wants to THANK Ontario, Canada, and the world’s doctors for the vital contribution each and everyone makes to the public, and for being awesome team members! I shined the lights for them at 9:00pm and hope you did too.

We continue our focus on vulnerable populations – how they are faring under the COVID-19 pandemic and what are the challenges of health providers taking care of them.

Today, we spotlight the valuable work of the Chiefs of Ontario in supporting the needs of First Nations persons and communities during this pandemic to prevent and/or delay the spread of COVID-19.

Today, we continue our concern about vulnerable populations. I begin with residents of long term care, and return once again, to persons experiencing homelessness and living in shelters.

RNAO launched on Friday a fourth survey for RNs, NPs and nursing graduates urging them to register for work in nursing homes that are on an active outbreak. This will fasten even more the matching of nursing staff to homes in dire need. Yesterday we responded, within hours, to the staffing needs of 18 additional organizations.

The tragedy in long-term care defies description. Of Ontario's official toll of 713 COVID-19 deaths, 72%, or 516 of those deaths, have occurred in long-term care facilities. There are currently outbreaks in 132 nursing homes, or just over a fifth of the 626 homes province-wide, and there are outbreaks in 63 retirement homes.

The ubiquitous slogan, from TV to social media, is: “We are all in this together!” However, the reality of the pandemic is strikingly different. The COVID virus insidiously attacks the most vulnerable among us, and it takes an extraordinary amount of intentional focus, effort, resources and humanity to make sure we protect those most exposed to infection and who expect the worst outcomes.