Dear Ward 24 Neighbours,
Here is my mid-day update!
I want to thank everyone for your efforts during this very difficult time. It is very important for all of us, to the best of our ability to follow the mandatory social distancing bylaw!
Please see the following update regarding the Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) from the City of Toronto:
City of Toronto recalling poor quality surgical masks distributed to staffThe City of Toronto discovered yesterday that a recently-purchased order of more than $200,000 worth of surgical masks do not meet the specifications the City requires for such masks and took immediate action, recalling these masks. Four-thousand boxes containing 50 masks per box were received, and 1,252 boxes, or 62,600 masks, were distributed to the City’s long-term care homes on March 28. The City’s occupational health safety staff have been contacted. The City is investigating to determine how many employees in the City’s long-term care homes were caring for a patient while wearing these masks, and if there was possible exposure to COVID-19. The City is retrieving its stockpile of surgical masks as a stop-gap measure until a new, appropriate grade mask, as specified, can be purchased, which will happen on a priority basis, as the loss of this inventory makes for a significant shortfall of surgical masks for the City. The Province of Ontario has been contacted to help expedite this order.Full news release here: https://bit.ly/3e2QsQ6
Ontario Calls on all Health Care Workers to Help Fight COVID-19 The Ontario government is taking further action to stop the spread of COVID-19 by actively recruiting health care workers to increase the frontline capacity of hospitals, clinics, and assessment centres. Today, the province is launching a new online tool that will help match skilled frontline workers with employers.
The new Health Workforce Matching Portal will enable health care providers with a range of experience to join the province’s response to COVID-19. Those providers include retired or non-active health care professionals, internationally educated health care professionals, students, and volunteers with health care experience. The portal will efficiently match the availability and skillsets of frontline health care workers to the employers in need of assistance to perform a variety of public health functions, such as case and contact management. Full news release here: https://bit.ly/2wlzLyc
A list of food banks and soup kitchens in Ward 24 can be found here: https://bit.ly/2RcvdRV Please remember to call ahead to book to ensure they are properly stocked. For those interested in volunteering, food banks are always looking for volunteers, so please feel free to save and share this information.
The City’s website is updated daily with the latest health advice, and information about City services and social supports. Check https://www.toronto.ca/covid-19/ for answers to common questions before contacting the Toronto Public Health COVID-19 Hotline or 311. You can also reach me by telephone at 416-396-7222 or email me at councillor_ainslie@toronto.ca
All my Best,
Paul