Ontario hospitals begin to brace for fourth wave of COVID-19
As the Brampton Civic Hospital celebrated zero COVID-19 patients in critical care Wednesday, for the first time since the start of the pandemic, the Ontario Hospital Association (OHA) warned that an impending surge in virus case counts could represent a threat to the province.
“This pandemic is ending but a fourth wave could still inflict a deadly toll on the unvaccinated,” OHA president Anthony Dale said in a statement.
The association called on Ontarians who had not yet received two doses to get fully immunized before an anticipated autumn increase in case counts—in what is now being called the pandemic of the unvaccinated.
“I think it’s going to be primarily be younger unvaccinated children [affected], and of course the adults who have chosen not to get the vaccine,” York Region emergency physician Dr. Steve Flindall said of a fourth wave.
“I’m really hoping the vaccinated individuals in the population will act as a firebreak between transmissions.”
Many experts remain optimistic that Ontario’s health-care systems will not succumb to the same strain as during the third wave of the virus, when non-urgent surgeries had to be postponed and patients were transferred between hospitals to access critical care.
“The risk of being on the brink of collapse of the hospital and health-care system, like we were in April—I don’t think that we should see that, or expect that, in the coming months because of the vaccine rate that we have here in Ontario,” said Dr. Dale Kalina, medical director of infection and control at Joseph Brant Hospital.
Kalina pointed to the recent spikes in COVID-19 cases in the U.K. and the U.S.; in the U.K., where the vaccination rate is comparable to Ontario’s, the increase in COVID-19 hospitalizations was minimal. But in Florida, where only 59 per cent of adults are fully vaccinated, hospitalizations increased Tuesday to a level that surpassed the record set before vaccines were even available.
“We’re running out of materials, our staff is exhausted, we’re really really straining,” Florida infectious disease specialist Dr. Aileen Marty told CTV News Wednesday.
“It’s particularly distressing that so many of our patients are young, otherwise healthy individuals that can’t breathe.”
“Given that thousands of Ontario children under the age of 12 will be returning to indoor in-person learning in just a few weeks, it's vital that all eligible residents receive both shots to keep transmission levels low, protect vulnerable populations and ensure that access to non-COVID related hospital services is not disrupted a further time,” said Dale.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Most of Canada to receive emergency alert test today
The federal government will test its capacity to issue emergency alerts today, with the exception of Ontario, where the test will take place on May 15.
OPINION What King Charles' schedule being too 'full' to accommodate son suggests about relationship with Prince Harry
Prince Harry, the Duke of Sussex, has made headlines with his recent arrival in the U.K., this time to celebrate all things Invictus. But upon the prince landing in the U.K., we have already had confirmation that King Charles III won't have time to see his youngest son during his brief visit.
Ontario man devastated to learn $150,000 line of credit isn't insured after wife dies
An Ontario man found out that a line of credit he thought was insured actually isn't after his wife of 50 years died.
Boy Scouts of America is rebranding. Here's why they're now named Scouting America
After more than a century, Boy Scouts of America is rebranding as Scouting America, another major shakeup for an organization that once proudly resisted change.
Stormy Daniels describes meeting Trump during occasionally graphic testimony in hush money trial
With Donald Trump sitting just feet away, Stormy Daniels testified Tuesday at the former president's hush money trial about a sexual encounter the porn actor says they had in 2006 that resulted in her being paid to keep silent during the presidential race 10 years later.
Rape, terror and death at sea: How a boat carrying Rohingya children, women and men capsized
In March, Indonesian officials and local fishermen rescued 75 people from the overturned hull of a boat off the coast of Indonesia. Until now, little was known about why the boat capsized.
'A huge difference': These adults born in the '90s partnered with their parents to buy homes in Ontario
An Ontario woman said it would have been impossible to buy a house without her mother – an anecdote that animates the fact that over 17 per cent of Canadian homeowners born in the ‘90s own their property with their parents, according to a new report.
How Drake and Kendrick Lamar's rap beef escalated within weeks
A long-simmering feud between hip-hop superstars Drake and Kendrick Lamar reached a boiling point in recent days as the pair traded increasingly personal insults on a succession of diss tracks. Here’s a quick overview of what’s behind the ongoing beef.
opinion Tom Mulcair: Trudeau's handling of Poilievre's 'wacko' House turfing a clear sign of Liberal desperation
When Speaker Greg Fergus tossed out Pierre Poilievre from the House last week, "those of us who have experience as parliamentarians simply couldn't believe our eyes," writes former NDP leader Tom Mulcair in his column for CTVNews.ca