Quebec's 6th wave could be as bad as the last, health expert warns
CBC
A top infectious diseases specialist in Quebec says there is a disconnect between government inaction and the gravity of the increasing number of hospitalizations and deaths.
Dr. Cécile Tremblay, a microbiologist and infectious diseases specialist at the CHUM hospital in Montreal, says the province's health-care system could soon become overwhelmed — once again — with 10,000 health-care workers already off the job amid the sixth pandemic wave of infections.
In two weeks, the province is expected to lift nearly all masking requirements.
Though interim public health director Dr. Luc Boileau said he would be advising the government on whether to keep mask mandates and reimpose restrictions next week, Health Minister Christian Dubé has said, so far, those plans aren't changing.
Boileau said he's counting on Quebecers to use common sense, be careful and reduce their contacts.
But Tremblay said that won't be enough to protect hospital capacity. The Omicron BA.2 variant is even more infectious than the previous one — up to 70 per cent more by some estimates, she said.
"I don't think the [government] message is appropriate to what the situation is right now," Tremblay said, noting it leaves at-risk populations to fend for themselves.
"Ten to 12 people a day die from COVID. You know, that's a lot of people dying," she said. "Is this what it means to be living with the virus? Not for me. I don't accept that."
Tremblay said she is not in favour of another complete shutdown but she is calling on the government to keep masking restrictions and to reduce capacity in some businesses where there is more risk of infection, such as restaurants.
"The pandemic is not over and this sixth wave is going probably going to be as bad as the fifth one. We should at least have the same sense of urgency," Tremblay said.
Thursday, the province reported 1,238 people in hospital, 3,319 new cases of COVID-19 and 12 deaths.
Myrna Lashley, a psychologist and associate professor at McGill University, said it's clear the government is wary of reimposing restrictions because it is concerned about backlash and economic fallout.
As a result, Lashley is advising Quebecers to exercise caution in order to protect themselves and others.
"A lot of people complained that they were being treated as children and that their agency was removed from them and they were being told what to do," Lashley said.
Fort William First Nation is opposing a planned redevelopment of the Ontario Power Generation's (OPG) 117 year old Kakabeka Falls Generating Station, which is located in their traditional territory.
A building that sits at the corner of Sussex Street and Brunswick Avenue has had many lives over the last century — being a church, a school and offices. Now it's set to become housing, at a time when the city sorely needs it.
A Waterloo, Ont., elementary school principal will be sentenced in the new year after pleading guilty to child sexual exploitation charges following a joint investigation that involved the London, Toronto and Waterloo police services.
Students at UPEI have let their student union know what they want from the province this fiscal year, and those priorities are reflected in a 2024-2025 advocacy document brought to the legislature on Wednesday.
Larger communities in the N.W.T. will soon see a boost in their territorial funding to maintain infrastructure and deliver services — like water and waste management — but the increase still falls short of what communities need.
The toxic drug crisis has taken more than 47,000 lives in Canada since 2016 and the synthetic opioid fentanyl has become a household name. But now, what's believed to be an even more potent class of synthetic drugs is showing up in drug busts across the country: nitazenes.
The Liberal government and the NDP have agreed to introduce a two-month GST vacation on certain items before the holiday season, Radio-Canada has learned.
Veterinarians are warning Londoners to make sure their dogs are vaccinated and keeping clean after a deadly virus outbreak was declared in London this week.
Registered nurses rallied in St. John's Wednesday as part of a week-long convention, again calling on the Newfoundland and Labrador government to create permanent solutions to staff shortages and workplace violence.
New poll results released by Narrative Research suggest the Progressive Conservatives are heading into Tuesday's provincial election with a commanding lead over their political rivals.
A measles outbreak in New Brunswick is set to push Canada's annual case count to the highest it's been in five years, highlighting how infectious the disease is and how low vaccination rates have allowed it to take hold, says an immunologist.