Some high-ranking Ontario politicians and prominent healthcare organizations are issuing warnings ahead of a series of protests expected to take place today in Canadian hospitals.
An organization calling itself Canadian Frontline Nurses posted notices of “silent vigils” that are expected to take place in all 10 provinces, saying they are intended to criticize public health measures put in place to slow the spread of COVID-19.
Possible locations include the Winnipeg Health Sciences Center, Toronto General Hospital, and the Queen Elizabeth II Health Sciences Center in Halifax.
Organizers say they want to take a position against what they call “tyrannical measures and government overreach,” adding that they are not encouraging nurses to drop their shifts or abandon patients.
But Ontario Prime Minister Doug Ford, whose province was one of the targets of similar earlier protests after he announced plans for a vaccine testing system, condemned the latest round Sunday in a tweet that described events as “selfish, cowardly and reckless. “
The Ontario Registered Nurses Association and the Ontario Medical Association issued a joint statement “strongly condemning” planned outages and calling for designated safe zones around health care facilities to protect staff and patients, a proposal that the new Democrats from the province have also presented.
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“Nurses, doctors and other healthcare workers have been working around the clock on the front lines of the pandemic for 18 months helping to keep our communities safe,” the joint statement read Sunday. “These COVID-19 heroes need the resources and support to continue the battle, now in the midst of a fourth wave. They cannot and should not be distracted, or worse still, discouraged by protests outside their workplaces.”
Toronto Mayor John Tory also took to social media to condemn planned protests for some city hospitals, adding that he has been in contact with the local police chief about the events and received assurances that staff would be there. protected and patients could access the buildings.
“I support the police to take the necessary steps to protect the lives of innocent people seeking health care and all of our health heroes,” Tory wrote on Twitter. “We have long passed the time when we can have this tyranny of the few interfering with access to healthcare during a pandemic.”
Politicians issue warnings ahead of the expected hospital protests across Canada. # COVID19 #VaccinePassport
Past protests have focused both on public health measures and the prospect of vaccination test systems that would limit access to many public settings for those who have not been immunized against COVID-19.
British Columbia’s system goes into effect on Monday, while Ontario’s will launch on September 22.
Quebec launched earlier this month, Manitoba began issuing vaccine cards in June, and both Nova Scotia and Yukon have said vaccination test systems are in the works.
This Canadian Press report was first published on September 13, 2021..
Reference-www.nationalobserver.com