In December The Suburban broke the story of a Protocol issued as a non-mandatory guideline by the Quebec Health Ministry to limit ER and ICU care during the pandemic. Three
In December
The Suburban broke the story of a Protocol issued as a non-mandatory guideline by the Quebec Health Ministry to limit ER and ICU care during the pandemic. Two weeks ago we published another exclusive that Quebec was considering changing the Protocol into a mandatory Decree. That decree would put into force the refusal and withdrawal of critical care if a person did not meet a â70% survivability levelâ as determined by a three-person committee in each hospital.
We have been reporting weekly on the burgeoning consensus among doctors and lawyers against such a Decree. Criticism has focused not only on the violations of the right to life guarantees in the Canadian and Quebec Charters of Rights that such a Decree would entail, but more specifically on the discrimination against people based on age which would also constitute violations of guarantees against ageism in both Charters. Most seniors could never reach the 70% threshold. The Protocol even has a standard
The recent directives by Quebecâs Minister of Health entitled âPrioritization for access to adult intensive care in the extreme context of a pandemicâ and the plans of some hospitals to implement them demonstrates the abandonment of the âGood Samaritanâ model of caring for all people regardless of their medical condition.
These directives limit access to Intensive Care Unit (ICU)/critical care beds when a âsurcharge of capacityâ of 150% to 200% is reached for ICU beds.
In Step 3 only those with a 70% or more chance of recovery are admitted to the ICU. Those longer than 21 days on a ventilator and not showing clinical signs of improvement are unplugged to die.
Last December 5th The Suburban broke the story on a Health Ministry protocol that would limit intensive and emergency care as well as surgeries in cases where ICUs and ERs
Is Canada Ready to Meet the Next Wave of Pandemic Challenges?
As Canada grapples with rising COVID-19 cases and new, more transmissible strains of the virus, experts in medicine and emergency preparedness say it’s worth taking stock and preparing to better meet the next stage of pandemic challenges.
Dr. Shawn Whatley, a past president of the Ontario Medical Association, says that last year in the early days of the pandemic, the government didn’t yet know what it was dealing with, but at this stage officials should be thinking more strategically in several areas.
Whatley, a Munk senior fellow at the Macdonald-Laurier Institute, says that although the vaccine rollout in Canada will provide much-needed relief, it’s not a cure-all and governments should adjust their approach in order to save lives in the long run.