Quebec calls on thousands of public servants to help clean, distribute meals in hospitals
Quebec's treasury board is calling on public servants from all departments to help in hospitals, CTV News has confirmed.
Radio-Canada first reported that an internal letter was sent to government personnel asking them to temporarily become service aids.
Service aids help prepare and distribute meals to patients, they also help with cleaning and other tasks. Quebec's health ministry is looking to hire 2,165 of them.
A treasury spokesperson told CTV News the call for help is in response to rapidly-rising occupancy in Quebec's hospitals due to the highly-infectious Omicron variant.
"(There is) an urgent need for personnel," Florence Plourde told CTV in an email, adding that the aids will be brought in over the coming weeks.
As of Sunday, there were 3,085 people in hospital with COVID-19, 275 of whom were in the ICU.
Quebec Premier Francois Legault was cautiously optimistic about Omicron's effect on the province's hospitals in the coming days.
On Thursday, he said he had been advised by public health that the current wave is likely coming to its peak, and that hospitalizations would soon follow suit.
"We have to remain very careful. The number of hospitalization is still very high, and will maybe continue to increase for the next few days," he said, predicting hospitals may see their highest rates of admission over the weekend.
Officials continued to encourage Quebecers to be vaccinated. Even as Omicron infections spread rapidly among those vaccinated and unvaccinated alike, it still provides good protection against serious infection.
“Vaccination is continuing," said Legault. "It is the key in order to be able to live with the virus."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Fluid in eye cells can 'boil' if you watch the eclipse without protection: expert
Millions of people in parts of Eastern and Atlantic Canada will be able to see the rare solar eclipse happening on April 8. But they should only look up if they have proper eye protection, experts say.
CRA no longer requiring 'bare trust' reporting in 2023 tax return
The Canada Revenue Agency announced Thursday it will not require 'bare trust' reporting from Canadians that it introduced for the 2024 tax season, just four days before the April 2 deadline.
NEW More unauthorized products for skin, sexual enhancement, recalled: Here are the recalls of this week
Health Canada and the Canadian Food Inspection Agency recalled various items this week, including torches, beef biltong and unauthorized products related to skin care and sexual enhancement.
Where is the worst place for allergy sufferers in Canada?
The spring allergy season has started early in many parts of Canada, with high levels of pollen in some cities already. Experts weigh in on which areas have it worse so far this season.
Do these exercises for core strength if you can't stomach doing planks
Planks are one of the most effective exercises for strengthening your midsection, as they target all of your major core muscles: the transverse abdominis, rectus abdominis, external obliques and internal obliques. Yet despite the popularity of various 10-minute plank challenges, planking is actually one of the most dreaded core exercises, according to many fitness experts.
He didn't trust police but sought their help anyway. Two days later, he was dead
Jameek Lowery was among more than 330 Black people who died after police stopped them with tactics that aren’t supposed to be deadly, like physical restraint and use of stun guns, The Associated Press found.
Grandparent scam: London, Ont., senior beats fraudsters not once, but twice
It was a typical Tuesday for Mabel Beharrell, 84, until she got the call that would turn her world upside down. Her teenaged grandson was in trouble and needed her help.
Polar ice is melting and changing Earth's rotation. It's messing with time itself
One day in the next couple of years, everyone in the world will lose a second of their time. Exactly when that will happen is being influenced by humans, according to a new study, as melting polar ice alters the Earth’s rotation and changes time itself.
Sunshine list: These were the Ontario public sector's highest earners in 2023
Ontario released its annual sunshine list Thursday afternoon, noting that the largest year-over-year increases were in hospitals, municipalities, and post-secondary sectors.