Sharon Straus and colleagues argue that residents, families, and staff in long term care homes in Canada were failed by governments during the pandemic and need coordinated efforts across federal, provincial, and territorial governments to safeguard these populations
### Key messages
People living and working in long term care homes (LTCHs) (box 1) in Canada mostly older adults were disproportionately affected by covid-19.1 LTCH residents accounted for 3% of covid cases in Canada and 43% of related deaths by December 2021, among the highest proportion of LTCH covid-19 deaths worldwide.12 LTCH residents were prioritised for the covid-19 vaccine rollout and by 15 March 2021 95% had received their first dose.1 Outbreaks and deaths declined but continued; more LTCH outbreaks occurred in 2022 than in 2020 and 2021 combined as vaccination booster uptake varied.3 In 2022 covid-19 was the leading cause of hospital admissions of older adults in Canada.4 Compared with before the pandemic, LTC
The global pandemic marked Canada as an outlier in one significant, tragic way. While seniors in most countries were hit hard, in Canada, a whopping 81 per…
The global pandemic marked Canada as an outlier in one significant, tragic way. While seniors in most countries were hit hard, in Canada, a whopping 81 per…