City preparing long-term care staff, volunteers, visitors for new immunization requirements

As of mid-November, new COVID-19 immunization rules will be in place for staff, volunteers as well as residents who work or visit city-run long-term care homes.

In a memo to city council from general manager of community and social services Donna Gray on Friday, Gray reminded that all long-term care staff, volunteers and support workers must be fully immunized against COVID-19, or provide proof of medical exemption, by November 15.

The new mandatory vaccination policy for city staff is in line with this direction, and city staff will be required to be fully immunized two weeks earlier than the provincial requirement, Gray added.

On top of that, the city will be implementing more safety precautions for visitors to long-term care homes.

All visitors, including designated caregivers, will also need to provide proof of full vaccination against COVID-19.

“These new measures will ensure the greatest level of protection for all residents and staff, whose health and safety are our top priority,” Gray said in the memo.

Visitors who do not provide proof of full immunization will need to adhere to additional precautions.

When visiting a city long-term care home, visitors who do not show proof will need to:

• undergo rapid antigen testing each day they visit
• wear additional personal protective equipment (masks and gowns)
• remain in the resident’s room at all times.

The Ontario government announced on October 1 that all long-term care homes must be vaccinated against COVID-19, reversing a previous vaccine-or-test policy it defended.

In announcing the policy change, Long-Term Care Minister Rod Phillips said it had become clear that vaccination rates among staff were not going to be sufficient without a mandate, given the presence of the Delta variant. 

Phillips said that while 90 per cent of staff overall have received at least one dose, there were dozens of homes with vaccination rates below 80 per cent.

The allowable exemptions will be a fairly narrow list, Phillips said, such as an allergy to a vaccine ingredient or an adverse reaction to a first dose.

The government's previous policy was to require regular testing for staff not vaccinated against COVID-19. Phillips said in late August that those rules had been a “great success,” but noted Friday that positive cases in unvaccinated staff were causing outbreaks.

Homes that experience staffing challenges due to the policy will be supported, Philips said, including through mobile support teams that helped at 70 different homes through the pandemic. As well, thousands of new personal support workers are set to graduate, he said.

“This will be difficult for those that make a choice not to become vaccinated, but the reality is that our residents, they don’t have a choice about where they are going to live,” Phillips said. “This is their home and we have to make sure that they are protected.”

– With files from Allison Jones, The Canadian Press