In preparation for a surge in patients as a result of COVID-19, hospitals across Ontario have been rapidly expanding their capacity. In Mississauga, Trillium Health Partners constructed an 80-bed temporary facility at its Mississauga Hospital, while Brampton Civic has also increased its space.
However, with staff falling ill and others forced to self-isolate, while even more beds are needed as COVID-19 numbers rise, a significant increase in healthcare workers will be required.
Ensuring residents remain physically distant is the most important role for municipal governments in the COVID-19 crisis. As the weather gets warmer and more residents flirt with breaking the rules, Mississauga and Brampton have taken different approaches to dealing with the crucial directive.
The city says none of the employees impacted by the announcement are essential workers.
It comes days after Brampton announced the cancellation of all city-run events until July 1.
Correctional facilities and prisons across the province have been a topic of conversation during the COVID-19 pandemic due to the potential for the virus to spread quickly should it enter these closed environments.
With cases confirmed at two Brampton detention facilities, questions are mounting about what this could mean for both detainees and staff.
Transit drivers are completing an essential service during the spread of the novel coronavirus. However, they are not on the list of prioritized individuals who receive testing. Even with social distancing, this can be an issue given the work bus drivers perform on a daily basis.
New measures introduced by the province to improve testing and protective measures in long-term care facilities are being questioned as Ontarians are demanding more action.
The new moves come as Peel fights a number of COVID-19 outbreaks in the region’s seniors’ homes, where eight residents have already lost their lives.
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Society's most vulnerable populations face a greater risk from COVID-19. For many South Asian-Canadians, this risk is met with an added layer of concern with research that shows the community has a higher incidence of underlying health conditions that make the threat from infection far more severe.
Peel District School Board has apologized for the way it has dealt with the region’s Black community, admitting it has an issue of “systemic racism”. The apology comes after a disturbing provincial review of the board and a series of episodes that highlighted the lack of trust among local parents.
Despite stepped-up efforts to protect the elderly in Peel’s long-term care and retirement homes, the number of infections in these institutions continues to climb.
Deputy Premier and Minister of Health Christine Elliott has repeatedly said the province is building an “iron ring” around Ontario’s seniors’ homes, but her government had previously turned a blind eye to regulations in the sector.
The Region of Peel has seen its largest daily spike in new cases, one day after the province of Ontario extended its emergency declaration, signalling social and physical distancing measures will remain in place for at least another four weeks.
Many politicians representing Brampton at the provincial and federal level are keeping busy to help their constituents. This includes everything from hand delivering personal protective equipment, answering questions on available benefits, to addressing the concerns of Canadians stuck abroad. Others have been less involved.
The William Osler Health System joins Mississauga’s Trillium Health Partners in having to declare an outbreak of COVID-19 in one of its facilities. Both Mississauga hospitals previously declared an outbreak.
Osler’s first outbreak at Civic has yet to impact any patients, only healthcare workers, as of Friday.
Amid a crisis that has pushed people into isolation, the Peel community is still finding ways to help each other.
The lack of available personal protective equipment (PPE) for frontline healthcare workers has grown into a global issue. In the Region of Peel, local businesses and community members are working to donate as many needed supplies as possible.
Less than a week ago, the Mississauga Food Bank issued an urgent plea for financial aid. A drop in donations and rising demand due to COVID-19 had left them in a precarious position, needing hundreds of thousands of dollars.
In the days since the appeal, local figures and the firefighters’ union have stepped up.
Premier Doug Ford’s support of public health and government initiatives, and his truthful and commanding presence at the lectern as this province battles the vagaries of this awful pandemic, are an illustration of a politician putting his ego and ideology aside to speak and work for the good of all constituents. He wants hospital administrators, who hold the crucial data we all need to make decisions for ourselves and our family, to do the same.
Instead of paying property tax, Toronto Pearson Airport pays the City of Mississauga based on how many passengers fly through annually.
A series of regulations favour the airport and hinder the city, meaning Mississauga will feel the pain of the pandemic long after it passes.
A new tool that would use artificial intelligence and existing data to predict future outbreaks of COVID-19 is currently under development by the province.
Infection rates across Ontario have decreased but hospitals are preparing for more cases, as those diagnosed weeks ago could develop more serious symptoms.
A fourth transit operator in Brampton has been diagnosed with the novel coronavirus. Three of them worked in the same facility, but the City takes its cues from the local public health authority, which has not advised the declaration of an outbreak. It's unclear if contact tracing investigations have been used to figure out why this is happening, while some in the public continue to rely on transit.
At the end of March, COVID-19 cases were growing at nearly 25 percent, on average, everyday across the Region of Peel.
With physical and social distancing measures in place, April has seen much different numbers.
The warnings were clear that how we have lived our lives might lead to the latest pandemic. This has been articulated by scientists for years – who have been mostly mocked or ignored in the past. While we’re bivouacked at home, there’s plenty to read about our vulnerabilities, and how we can now move toward a more universal and enlightened truth in battling pandemics, and other fundamental threats to our existence.
There are many unsung heroes in the war against COVID-19, like the road warriors in our trucking industry who keep our store shelves stocked with the goods we need to survive and the medical supplies moving to keep us safe. Mississauga and Brampton are the epicentre of this industry, often looked down on by many in our society.
She’s a Black woman who wears her pro-life convictions on her sleeve. She wants to bring social conservatism out from the closet, where the party has completely botched efforts to hide many of its central values, according to her. And Leslyn Lewis tells The Pointer she wants to put the needs of cities like Mississauga and Brampton at the top of her agenda.
Hundreds of religious groups in Peel were forced to close their doors to stop the spread of COVID-19. Leaders of different faiths are doing their best to connect with community members hurting during a time of need. In-person services, online sermons, digital classes and prayers and check-ins over the phone are now becoming routine for those who help take care of our spiritual well-being.
By the time COVID-19 subsides, numerous projections show small businesses including restaurants will continue to suffer for many months. Some likely won't open their doors again. Despite these looming concerns, it’s not enough to stop residents, local politicians and business owners who are offering services to help people during the crisis.
The province of Ontario has extended its emergency declaration after more than 400 new cases were confirmed Friday evening.
The announcement also came with a number of new initiatives to make it easier for hospitals to expand capacity, something Peel’s previously stretched healthcare facilities have already benefited from.
With the implementation of mandatory physical distancing measures, many people have been cut off from organizations they rely on. This includes victims of domestic violence, who may not be able to seek help when they need it most. Others across the region in desperate need because of the impacts of the pandemic have also been cut off from support.
For the second time, a Mississauga hospital has had to declare a COVID-19 outbreak. Trillium Health Partners has said approximately 10 staff members at Mississauga Hospital are infected with the virus.
The news comes as Peel confirmed 46 new cases of the novel coronavirus in the region Friday morning.
Deemed non-essential, restaurants and small eateries across the province have been tossed into limbo. Forced to close their doors and attempt to survive on take-out orders, many face the grim reality that COVID-19 could leave them shuttered for good.
Brampton restaurateurs say they need government assistance immediately to survive the pandemic.
Canadians are anxious and fearful during this global pandemic, new data from Statistics Canada shows.
However, a closer look at Peel’s numbers reveals a flicker of light as the region hopes to move toward the other end of the crisis, for now.
The details around the man’s death Thursday morning remain unclear, but Peel Public Health has released a brief statement.
Before recent changes at the provincial level, paramedics did not have adequate protocols to protect themselves against the spread of COVID-19. Part of what they did have included the words of the patients they help each and every day. Unfortunately, not all those who depend on these everyday heroes are being honest.
Trillium Health Partners is constructing an 80-bed care facility on the grounds of Mississauga Hospital to deal with increased demand created by COVID-19.
The facility is the latest attempt by the hospital system to expand its ability to care for residents, as the number of those requiring treatment in hospitals for COVID-19 continues to rise in Canada’s sixth largest city.
Brampton has seen another significant rise in the number of COVID-19 cases as residents wait to see if strict physical distancing measures are having an impact.
In order to slow the spread, city staff have closed burial grounds and plan to reduce bus service to a temporary Sunday schedule.
Shuttered recreation centres and free transit are necessary for Mississauga’s response to COVID-19. The measures, introduced over the past few weeks, are in place to keep people apart and slow the spread of the virus. The fallout: ending public life and a massive drop in revenues is emptying city coffers which are predicted to finish the year tens of millions in the red.
Only days after reporting a lack of resources, the health networks covering Peel’s two cities have added extra ICU beds and ventilators. Now, Brampton is part of a network of hospitals with more than 80 percent of its ventilators free, waiting to fight the novel coronavirus.
It’s been described as the “wild west” of procurement. Right now, all countries are trying to stock up on necessary personal protective equipment for front line workers, making international competition fierce.
As the battle for PPE continues, the City of Mississauga and its hospitals are bracing for the full impact of the virus.
As the provincial government moves to provide further information to first responders to warn them about potential exposure to COVID-19, Brampton saw a spike in cases.
The new cases are part of the bad news across Peel according to the Region’s data for confirmed cases each day, as the only full-service local hospital looks for ways to increase alarmingly low critical care capacity in the city.
The federal government is in the middle of rolling out its enormous relief package to Canadians impacted by COVID-19. The support is aimed at keeping food on the table for families around the country. However, even as the money comes out, thousands are relying on food banks, bursary funds and other sources of funding to plug the gaps.
O-Two Medical Tech has been producing medical equipment for the last 50 years, shipping it out to more than 60 countries around the world. With hundreds of lives on the line across Ontario, this latest job is its most important yet.
After a weekend when the number of new infections reached a brief plateau in Brampton, the city registered a jump of 34 infections Monday morning.
In an effort to help those impacted by the virus, further funds have been announced by the province to support social service organizations and frontline workers.
The city’s healthcare network is expanding capacity for critical care as Ontario enters a critical stage in its battle against COVID-19.
As Mississauga continues to experience a spike in new infections, and community spread sets in, more hospital-admitted patients with the virus are being reported by the local health network.
Experts say Canadians should not be surprised by their anxious reaction to the global pandemic and all the uncertainty suddenly surrounding them. But it’s also important to know there are resources that can help ease the fear enveloping many.
The novel coronavirus cases are over a million worldwide and thousands have died. This crisis has also created a new imperative: humans have to slow down, to self-isolate, to retreat into a smaller world that centres on their home – whether that’s a sprawling mansion or a one-bedroom apartment. This is a challenge faced by the two major personality types in society: introverts and extroverts. How will they respond to this massive societal realignment, and which type is better equipped to thrive?
In the past, people moved to Mississauga to take advantage of the suburban dream, a single-family home complete with white picket fence.
As millennials enter the real estate market, with limited finances and a climate conscious perspective, housing patterns are changing. In recent years, more and more people are choosing to cut large areas of land in half and build two houses where there used to be one.
The region's public health unit now reports 177 total cases of COVID-19 in the city. Meanwhile, the province is now reporting more than 4,000 cases across Ontario.
In Mississauga, the latest COVID-19 case tally brings the city’s total to 279. The spike in new cases comes after the city announced the layoffs of 2,000 part-time employees in non-essential services.
As the province releases alarming projections for the impact of COVID-19 in the coming weeks and months, the premier has resisted pressure to implement stricter measures on individuals and companies. Instead, Doug Ford has further limited the number of essential businesses operating in the province and is begging people to stay home.
In Europe, many countries have had severe mobility restrictions in place since March, with residents told not to leave the house. For Ontario, questions remain about whether similar rules will be applied and what exactly they would look like.
With news that the pandemic’s grip on Ontario will continue for weeks, possibly months, The City of Mississauga announced Friday that it will have to lay-off 2,000 staff. The novel coronavirus has led to the partial or complete shutdown of many city services, while most facilities remain shuttered, making it impossible to keep everyone on the payroll, the same reality faced by businesses across Mississauga.
The old saying goes, “know your enemy”. In the case of the coronavirus, the knowing part is difficult, but not impossible. In the Region of Peel this task comes down to a small group of public health professionals relying on an epidemiological investigative technique known as contact tracing.
The use of contact tracing has assisted countries like Singapore and South Korea to reduce their infection rates. With case counts surging across Ontario, could it be the difference?
On Friday, the provincial government released projections suggesting 1,600 Ontarians could die by April 30 as a result of COVID-19, under current isolation measures. While increased measures take effect Saturday at midnight, the dire modelling shows the worst impact of the virus is still to come. In Peel, hospital beds are already filling up, with one struggling as of April 1 and others confronting worsening numbers. There is mounting concern that some local healthcare systems are not being open and transparent with the public about the reality they face.
