Ontario to use ‘swat teams’ to fight virus in long-term care

Ontario announced a plan Wednesday in its fight against COVID -19 in long-term care facilities — a plan that is to include “swat teams” to help manage outbreaks.

The teams will be drawn from hospitals, home care and public health-care units to help homes manage outbreaks, said Premier Doug Ford.

Long-Term Care Minister Merrilee Fullerton said that over the next 48 hours, Ontario will start testing all symptomatic staff and residents as well as asymptomatic contacts of confirmed COVID-19 cases in LTC homes.

More than 190 LTC homes have submitted requests for staff. Fullerton said the province is looking to respond to these through provincial and federal job portals and the hospital and home care sectors.

The announcement came the same day the province reported its largest single-day increase in COVID-19 deaths, with 51 new deaths for a total of 385.

Across Canada, there are 27,557 confirmed cases and 954 people have died of the disease, said chief health officer Dr. Theresa Tam.

The number of confirmed cases worldwide has hit two million, according to figures from both Reuters and Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Md.

The global death toll is more than 133,000.

In Ottawa, new COVID-19 outbreaks were reported at the Extendicare Starwood and Laurier Manor long-term care homes. There were also 24 new cases since Tuesday and one new death.

Ottawa’s medical officer of health also clarified a statement made by the associate medical officer of health, who had urged residents on Tuesday not to talk on driveways or across fences because of concerns that this attracts more people, creating groups that exceed the legal limit of five people together.

Dr. Vera Etches urged people to stay at home and only go out for essential services but said people can interact with neighbours and friends, as long as they maintain a two-metre distance and avoid creating a gathering.

“We are asking you to use your best judgment to connect with others,” she said.

On the federal side, the government announced that it will work with the provinces and territories to top up the pay of essential and long-term care workers earning less than $2,500 monthly.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said it will be weeks before restrictions will be loosened.

“It would be terrible if we were to release restrictions too early and find out we’re suddenly back in another big wave of COVID-19 and everything we would’ve gone through up until now would’ve been for nothing.”

It would be terrible if we were to release restrictions too early and find out we’re suddenly back in another big wave of COVID-19 …