coronavirus update

Quebec health officials were ill-prepared to weather the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, with no coherent emergency plan and a health system that left vulnerable seniors in the lurch, the province’s health and welfare commissioner said Wednesday. Joanne Castonguay’s final report into the care and service offered to seniors in the…

The City of Toronto says it will distribute rapid antigen COVID-19 tests to licensed child care programs in the community. In a press release issued Tuesday, the city said it is working with the provincial government to distribute the tests.According to the city, two test kits will be allotted per staff member or care provider and…

From her Spanish-language Facebook, Instagram, YouTube and TikTok accounts, Colombian-born nurse Johana Botero makes her pitch to other South American health workers to come join her in Quebec. Some 10 years after arriving in Canada and well-established in her career, she now tries to help others navigate the long, complicated process…

Quebec recorded 89 new deaths linked to COVID-19 as hospitalizations remained on the upswing in the province Tuesday. Pandemic-related hospitalizations rose by 36 for a total of 3,417 patients. Of those, 289 are in intensive care units, an increase of three compared with the previous day.Health officials say 336 patients were admitted…

Quebec’s health minister is offering his condolences to the family of a four-year-old girl after a hospital network in the province’s capital confirmed she died “due to circumstances related to COVID-19.” “This is incredibly sad news,” Christian Dubé wrote on social media. “I would like to offer my deepest condolences to the family and…

A major union representing public sector workers says it’s open to temporarily transferring members to help out in the overburdened health system, but it says it wasn’t given enough notice and is facing labour shortages of its own. The Quebec government is looking for public sector workers to temporarily fill more than 2,000 health-care…

Quebec coroner Géhane Kamel said Monday that grieving families may never get the full story behind the thousands of deaths that occurred in long-term care homes during the first wave of COVID-19. Kamel expressed shock that after a yearlong investigation, there seemed to be no consensus from witnesses on the timeline of how the…

Quebec is reporting 3,381 COVID-19 hospitalizations on Monday and 54 more deaths attributed to the virus. Hospitalizations increased by 81 over the previous day, with 303 new patients admitted and 222 discharged. Of the 3,381 people in hospital with COVID-19, 286 are in intensive care for an increase of four. Read more:…

Quebec’s back-to-school plan for a return to in-person classes on Monday continues to draw backlash from parents and teachers alike as cases and hospitalizations linked to the Omicron variant are set to peak. Government and public health officials are adamant that the benefits of returning to school outweigh the risks.Dr. Yves Jalbert,…

Quebec is reporting an overall total of 3,085 COVID-19 hospitalizations on Friday, and 68 more deaths attributed to the virus. Health authorities said pandemic hospitalizations increased by 91 compared to the previous day, with 442 new patients admitted and 351 discharged. Of the 3,085 patients, 275 are being treated in intensive care…