In response to the surge, health authorities in Western Quebec have returned to a mask mandate across multiple facilities. Permanent facilities include the Pierre-Janet Mental Health Hospital and the Ressource Rehabilitation Centre. Our health care providers are currently facing unprecedented strain due to an early flu season. This flood is putting pressure on emergency room capacity and spurring concerns about the spread of avoidable illnesses.
Under these new mandates, face masks have become required wear in hospitals. More importantly, they are made compulsory in the area’s long-term care institutions and seniors’ homes, which span all of Western Quebec. This comprehensive approach aims to safeguard vulnerable populations from both COVID-19 and seasonal influenza as they navigate the current public health challenges.
In eastern Ontario, for example, mask rules differ drastically from hospital to hospital. The Ottawa Hospital, for example, has developed detailed mask policies that are appropriate in limited situations. To that end, patients coming into a facility with any respiratory symptoms should be fitted with masks to minimize risk of spreading contagious disease. Similar policies are in place at neighbouring Kingston Health Sciences Centre, which similarly started requiring masks for symptomatic patients.
The initiatives are intended to lessen the burden created by the deepening nationwide COVID-19 emergency. Along the way, they have to respond to the seasonal winter surge of flu. The health authorities strongly defend these policies, saying they are needed to protect patients, staff and all visitors to health facilities.
Quebec’s regional health authority for Western Quebec is making in the change. They are strictly requiring masks in all their buildings. This requires attention not just to the hospitals, but long-term care facilities and other settings in which these vulnerable populations live. These actions are a good first step in restoring public health safety, especially with emergency rooms still facing extreme pressure.
