HealthCareCAN is calling on the federal, provincial and territorial leaders to come together and ensure all frontline healthcare workers have the personal protective equipment (PPE) they need to do their jobs – protecting the health of Canadians.
We are in a critical phase of the COVID-19 pandemic where a surge in cases is expected yet supplies of PPEs are dwindling rapidly. It’s time for Canada to truly come together meet the COVID-19 challenge.
Canada’s healthcare institutions urge the federal government to work closely with the provinces to increase the manufacturing of critically needed PPE, to ease the restrictions on PPE imports (without compromising our high standard of quality) and to come together on a streamlined plan to ensure their fair distribution across the country through the creation of a centralized, inclusive federal coordination centre.
Canadian manufacturers have answered the federal government’s call to step up, but without clear guidelines about the divvying up of resources, and a system in place to collect and process PPE and equipment requests in a timely fashion, we could see the entire production descend into chaos.
Canada’s frontline healthcare workers are the heroes in the war against COVID-19 and not one should be left wondering whether they will have the essential equipment they need to do their jobs safely and effectively.
Paul-Émile Cloutier
President and CEO
HealthCareCAN