| Canada’s tragic truth /

Regardless of how all this ends, Canadians will have to come to terms with the fact that, as a nation, we failed far too many of our oldest and most vulnerable citizens living in nursing homes.

Canada's first death from COVID19 came at B.C.'S Lynn Valley nursing home on March 8. Since then, the disease has killed almost 1,000 more Canadians, about half of whom were living in nursing homes. A number of nursing home workers across Canada have also died.

I suppose it can be argued that since COVID-19 takes the heaviest toll on the elderly, it's to be expected that nursing homes would be hard hit. But consider, in a nation of 37.6 million people, roughly 400,000 live in longterm care (LTC). Almost 50 per cent of the nation's deaths are coming from just over one per cent of its population.

Wednesday, at his daily briefing, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau called the death toll in nursing homes Canada's “uncomfortable, tragic truth,” and promised that he and the premiers would address that truth in tonight's first ministers' call.

The prime minister said his government and the provinces must address the unacceptable inequity that sees many essential workers in LTC earning less than $2,500 per month.

Most care providers (other than nurses) working in the long-term care sector — in Nova Scotia they're called continuing care assistants — are paid an hourly wage that leaves them below Canada's “low income threshold” — the poverty line.

Earlier this week, Canada's chief public health officer, Dr. Theresa Tam, acknowledged the tragic LTC statistics, and added this chilling note:

“These deaths will continue to increase, even as the epidemic growth rate slows down. All the provinces and territories are trying to do the best they can to strengthen the response in that area (ltc). Because that is driving the severe outcomes in Canada. That is absolutely a key feature of this epidemic,” she said.

In Nova Scotia, where two of the province's three deaths from COVID19 were nursing home residents, this week the province mandated that all nursing home employees must wear surgical masks at work.

That order likely would have come sooner, except the province was worried about its supply of the essential equipment.

Nursing home residents don't bring the virus into the facilities. It comes in with others who are infected, but not symptomatic. Nova Scotia screens everyone entering LTC facilities for symptoms associated with COVID19. But once the virus is in a nursing home, it is difficult to contain.

Robert Strang, Nova Scotia's chief medical officer of health, said now that COVID-19 is being spread at the community level in Nova Scotia, an increase in cases in long-term care facilities is expected.

“It's almost impossible for people working in long-term care facilities to practise physical distancing, given they are helping people who need hands-on care,” Dr. Strang said. “Wearing a surgical mask is another measure we can use to prevent further spread of infection.”

Nova Scotia's nursing homes have been off limits to all but essential workers for weeks, adding to the anxiety of residents and their families, who can't get in to see them. At least nine nursing homes in Nova Scotia have reported that staff and/ or residents have tested positive for COVID-19.

Nova Scotia's largest LTC facility, Northwood in Halifax, is reporting 31 residents with COVID-19 and another 16 employees have tested positive. All cases have been isolated.

In Quebec and Ontario, the provincial governments are moving medical staff from hospital settings to care for residents in nursing homes. Both provinces are experiencing high rates of infection in their LTC homes.

A nursing home in Dorval, Quebec made headlines worldwide over the Easter weekend, after the province confirmed 31 deaths at the home, where staff basically abandoned the 150 residents.

In Ontario, Premier Doug Ford promised to put an “iron ring” around nursing homes but at least 114 of the provinces 600-plus LTC facilities are experiencing outbreaks.

"We have an inferno at long-term care," Ford admitted this week.

The rash of outbreaks in long-term care homes has pushed the number of COVID-19 deaths past the short-term projections the federal government released just a week ago.

On April 9, the government projected that there would be between 500 to 700 deaths from COVID-19 by today. But, as of Wednesday, Canada was reporting 978 deaths, and the numbers were driven largely by the high number of deaths in nursing homes.

The prime minister's focus this week on the toll COVID-19 is taking on older Canadians in LTC is undoubtedly welcome. Let's hope it's not too late.