Quebec’s top doctor questions lack of preparation as investigation leads to long-term care COVID deaths

The coroner leading the investigation into COVID-19 deaths in Quebec long-term care homes says she is concerned that the facilities are not prepared for the first wave of the pandemic.

Géhane Kamel made comments Monday as Quebec’s director of public health Dr Horacio Arruda testified a Monday before the investigation.

Kamel said previous testimony at the investigation showed that authorities were aware of the risks to long-term caregivers but took fewer precautions to protect those facilities than those in the public domain. what they did to prepare for the hospital.

Nearly 4,000 people died in long-term care homes in the early months of the pandemic.

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The Coroner investigation that resulted in many deaths at CHSLD Herron continues

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Arruda said a planning guide was sent to long-term care homes on March 12, 2020, but he added that Quebec’s focus is on preparing hospitals, building on experience in Italy, where hospitals are already overwhelmed.

However, the lack of staff and personal protective equipment in long-term care homes, he said, raises questions about the organization of Quebec’s long-term care system.

On Thursday, Arruda testified that he did not recall whether he had issued an official advisory to long-term care workers working in multiple facilities, an activity linked to the spread of the virus. COVID-19.

On Monday, Arruda confirmed that he had not submitted such a recommendation.

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