COVID-19: In the Line of Fire

PUBLISHED: 10/05/2020

How is it that the people on the front lines in the battle with COVID019 are the lowest paid and least appreciated workers in the pandemic?

Long term care and retirement homes are the hot spots still when it comes to the virus. More than half the COVID deaths in Canada have been in long term care. Here in Ontario, more than 130 thousand people are Personal Support Workers. As of Friday May 8th, seven PSW’s have died from COVID-19. The Ontario government has announced an inquiry into long term care after the pandemic is contained.

To get a perspective on what’s happening in the line of fire in those hot spots, we will chat with one woman who was willing to tell us her story of contracting Covid 19 and her struggles to make it back.

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REFERENCES:

https://toronto.ctvnews.ca/three-minutes-of-silence-held-for-three-personal-support-workers-lost-to-covid-19-1.4926582

https://www.toronto.com/news-story/9968608-north-york-psw-dies-as-a-result-of-coronavirus/

https://toronto.ctvnews.ca/second-ontario-psw-dies-of-covid-19-in-less-than-two-weeks-1.4917827

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/why-covid-19-has-personal-support-workers-feeling-uneasy-during-home-care-visits-1.5520722

https://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2020/04/30/until-covid-19-hit-psws-received-almost-no-recognition-thats-changed.html

https://www.ontariondp.ca/news/government-needs-step-support-health-care-workers-horwath

https://toronto.ctvnews.ca/mother-who-contracted-covid-19-in-ontario-long-term-care-home-left-gasping-for-air-in-final-moments-1.4898854?cache=%3Fot%3DAjaxLayout

https://www.ctvnews.ca/health/coronavirus/psw-death-sheds-light-on-risk-facing-health-care-workers-home-care-patients-1.4922566

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/union-long-term-care-inquiry-1.5556136

https://torontosun.com/news/local-news/seventh-ontario-psw-dies-of-covid-19