Canada may never use the 40,000 ventilators it ordered
OTTAWA — When the first ventilators rolled off a hastily put together assembly line, Rick Jamieson wanted to deliver them himself.
Jamieson, president of ABS Friction an Ontario brake pad manufacturer, climbed into the cab of a truck and went along for a 400-kilometre drive in late July.
“I, with the truck driver, drove it to Ottawa. That’s how proud of it we were.”
Jamieson’s first 12 ventilators were part of an order of 10,000 that a consortium he helped put together is delivering.
In total, the government ordered 40,000 from a variety of companies, including several small firms that overcame technical challenges, supply issues and other problems to get the machines built.
The artificial breathing machines can be essential for COVID patients, but even as the second wave hits there isn’t a high demand and experts believe, even in a worstcase, these machines may never be used.
Back in March, Jamieson saw the news and decided he wanted to do something to help.
The virus was ravaging New York City and northern Italy, overwhelming hospitals and leading to many deaths. People with existing respiratory conditions seemed particularly vulnerable
“My brother David died of an asthma attack. I’m asthmatic and I said I am going to see what I can do on this to help out.”
The 40,000 ventilators the government ordered came with a $1.1-billion price tag. Few ventilators were made in Canada before the pandemic and most of the companies awarded contracts had to start from scratch.
To date, the government has received just 3,210, but they also haven’t been needed.
In an email, procurement department spokesperson Michèle LaRose said they ordered ventilators from five
Canadian companies and eight international ones, but the Canadian firms are doing the bulk of the work.
They said they expect the rest by early next year.
“All deliveries are expected by March 2021. Public Services and Procurement Canada continues to work with manufacturers to monitor delivery progress,” she said.
Through the summer, ICU beds were mostly free of COVID patients and some provinces are now instituting lockdowns and restrictions precisely to avoid swamping intensive care units and forcing all these new ventilators into service.
Dr. Zain Chagla, an infectious disease specialist and professor at McMaster University, said in the early days there was a real fear ventilators could be needed on a mass scale.
“There was so much unknown about this disease, no one knew whether or not there were super spreaders in the community, whether or not there was a lot under the surface.”
According to Canadian Institutes of Health Information, there are around 75,000 hospital beds in Canada, but having a bed is just half of the problem.
Chagla said even if all 40,000 ventilators the government ordered were put into service, you would still need the doctors, respiratory technologists and critical care nurses to operate them.
“Some of these COVID patients … they’re very difficult to ventilate to begin with and often need some very experienced operators of the ventilator,” he said.
He said if hospitals were set to be overwhelmed, governments now know they can bring in restrictions and slow the spread of the virus.
He said it doesn’t hurt however, to be over prepared.
“Some of them may unfortunately be stockpiled, which is not the end of the world. We will have pandemics in the future and hopefully the stock that’s being bought up in Canada is relatively future proof.”