THUNDER BAY — The Ontario government has responded to the City of Thunder Bay's request for support in the management of isolation facilities for high-risk individuals diagnosed with COVID-19.
Mayor Bill Mauro says he's been told the province will provide between 10 and 20 personnel, as arranged by the Ontario Health north region.
The city had requested assistance from the Ontario Emergency Medical Assistance Team, but Mauro said its resources are already deployed across the province.
"We needed some people that were trained medical professionals to support the isolation situation and the needs of that population, as well as just other people who are not necessarily medical professionals, but who are required to do other things. We clearly had a need. We weren't sure if the numbers that require isolation would continue to climb, so it's important that we receive this," the mayor said Monday.
Mauro stated last week that local isolation facilities have kept more than 1,000 people out of hospital at various times during the pandemic, but that increasing community spread and an outbreak among the homeless population was stretching capacity and could result in additional pressure on the Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Centre.
A spokesperson for St. Joseph's Care Group said the 1,000 figure was as of the end of January, but just over the last few weeks the number grew to 1,300.
About 105 individuals were lodged in two isolation facilities in the city on Monday.
The hospital said that it had 29 admitted patients with COVID-19, including 10 in the Intensive Care Unit.
The Thunder Bay District Health Unit reported 376 active cases on Monday, a record high. The active case count has steadily increased, with the exception of one day, for the past two and a half weeks.
Mauro called the provincial announcement "a good first step."
Still outstanding is the city's request to the federal government's Public Health Agency of Canada for funding support from the beginning of April to the end of September.
Note: This story has been updated to include additional information provided by St. Joseph's Care Group.
