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The Quebec coroner, health authorities and the police have launched investigations in the wake of the deaths of 31 residents at a Montreal seniors’ home, where the owners allegedly withheld medical files and staff left their posts amid an outbreak of the novel coronavirus.
Relatives described a facility where only one or two orderlies remained on each floor, urine bags were left dripping on floors, residents struck by COVID-19 were not properly isolated and others lacked food or clean drinking water.
The deaths occurred since March 13 at Résidence Herron, a 154-bed private nursing home on Montreal’s West Island.
The Quebec government is also facing questions over its response to the outbreak, with relatives – such as Keira Whitehead, seen here on April 12, 2020, whose father died two days ago – raising concerns that staffing at Herron remained inadequate even after officials got involved two weeks ago.CHRISTINNE MUSCHI/Reuters
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Canada has managed so far to avoid surge of COVID-19 patients that paralyzed hospitals in Italy, New York
Early signs show parts of Canada may be starting to flatten the curve, as the feared surge of COVID-19 patients overwhelming hospitals has so far failed to materialize.
But infectious-disease experts warn that it’s still possible Canada will see a major spike in cases. Some regions, particularly Ontario and Quebec, are struggling to contain outbreaks at long-term care homes and other institutions and, experts say, relaxing physical distancing too soon could exacerbate the situation.
Health Canada approves new rapid COVID-testing kits
Health Canada has approved a new rapid test for COVID-19 that can produce results in under an hour, which is expected to alleviate the pressure on public health laboratories and help circumvent testing kit shortages.
Ottawa-based Spartan Bioscience received approval on the weekend and will be ready to start shipping tests for the federal and provincial governments as early as Monday, said Paul Lem, the company’s chief executive officer.
The company has contracts to produce rapid COVID-19 tests for the federal government, as well as Ontario, Quebec and Alberta. Other provinces are also working on arrangements with the company, but they haven’t been announced yet, Dr. Lem said.
British PM Boris Johnson released from hospital after COVID-19 treatment
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson was released from St. Thomas’ Hospital in London Sunday, but he is not expected to return to work for a couple of weeks.
In a video statement, Mr. Johnson thanked hospital staff and said the National Health Service “has saved my life, no question.” He also named several doctors and two nurses, in particular, “who stood by my bedside for 48 hours when things could have gone either way.”
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MORNING MARKETS
Global equities weakened on Monday as investors braced for more indications of economic damage from the coronavirus pandemic while oil prices rose in choppy trade following a landmark deal by OPEC and its allies to cut output. Markets in Britain, Germany, France and Hong Kong were all closed for Easter holidays. In Asia, Japan’s Nikkei finished down 2.33 per cent. The Shanghai Composite Index slid 0.49 per cent. New York futures were lower. The Canadian dollar was trading at 71.62 US cents.
ALSO ON OUR RADAR
Your money or your life? Coronavirus-era economics makes us ask grim questions about how to value each other
The pandemic is forcing us to ask grave and unsentimental questions. This is something pandemics do: They foment unrest and radical thinking. Which is more important: our money, or our lives? How should we measure the damage the pandemic is doing? In economic terms? Or in human costs? Should one matter more than the other? Who knows better, the doctors or the economists? What is the economic cost and value of saving a human life?
To the surprise of many, that last question actually has an answer.
WHAT EVERYONE’S TALKING ABOUT
Seniors’ care shouldn’t be a horror show, even when the pandemic is over
André Picard: "How is it possible that, in 2020, in Canada, that elders entrusted to a licensed care home can be treated worse than dogs at the city pound?
How is it conceivable that vulnerable seniors – some with dementia and severe mobility issues – could be left to fend for themselves?"
My uncomfortable reality: Doug Ford is the leader Ontario needs
Marie Henein: "It is not easy to heap praise in his direction. There are things he has done that I have not agreed with – pre-pandemic policies that I think are just plain wrong.
But right now, at this moment, Mr. Ford is showing himself to be a true leader. And for that, he deserves all Ontarians’ credit and support."
Pandemics are low-probability, high-consequence events. We should have been prepared
Dan Gardner: “In theory, being prepared for low-probability, high-consequence events such as a pandemic should not be difficult. Identify threats. Consider how to mitigate. Weigh costs of mitigation against probability and consequence, factoring in available resources and competing demands. Prepare."
Looking for investing ideas? Check out The Globe’s weekly digest of the latest insights and analysis from the pros, stock tips, portfolio strategies and what investors need to know for the week ahead. This week’s edition includes Gordon Pape on what life will look like after the pandemic (and the stocks that will benefit), plus RBC’s top stock picks, oversold REITs and BMO’s DRIP discount explained.
TODAY’S EDITORIAL CARTOON
David ParkinsDavid Parkins/The Globe and Mail
MOMENT IN TIME
Photo by James Lewcun / The Globe and Mail. Originally published August 9, 1979James Lewcun/The Globe and Mail
For more than 100 years, photographers have preserved an extraordinary collection of 20th-century news photography for The Globe and Mail. Every Monday, The Globe features one of these images. This month, we’re looking at the fight for rights and accommodations for people with disabilities.
In 1982, the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms declared physical or mental disabilities prohibited reasons for discrimination. It was a landmark for a country’s constitution. In 1986, the federal government introduced the Employment Equity Act, which sought to achieve equality in the work force and to correct any inherent disadvantages faced by “women, aboriginal peoples, persons with disabilities and members of visible minorities.” Employers were compelled to remove barriers to employment and no person could be denied a job opportunity unrelated to ability. Getting a job used to be extra difficult for a person with a physical disadvantage. Above, Globe photographer James Lewcun shows Flora Clark, who is deaf, operating a TTY machine at the Canadian Hearing Society in August, 1979. The headline – with its outdated adjective – in the accompanying story about her was: Handicapped Women Show They Belong in Workplace. Philip King
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Jamie Ross