March 22, 2021 – The Globe and Mail
How B.C.’s early success in protecting vulnerable seniors evaporated in COVID-19 second wave
By: Justine Hunter
A report by the National Institute on Ageing shows that between Sept. 1, 2020, and Feb. 15, there were 7,181 COVID-19 deaths in long-term care in Canada – a small decrease compared with the first wave. The decline was largely because of Quebec’s response to its devastating outcomes in the first wave, with a massive hiring blitz to improve staffing in care homes and the creation of infection prevention and control teams. In B.C., the second-wave death toll in care homes was almost five times higher than in the first wave: 567 residents.
Samir Sinha, a co-author of the report, said British Columbia did remarkable work, initially. A key innovation was a single-site order that provided workers in care homes job security without juggling shifts at different facilities, and full sick pay benefits so they could afford to stay home when feeling ill. The provincial government funded that at a cost of $165-million.