Your weekly COVID-19 update Every Tuesday, the Maclean's daily newsletter will catch you up on what you need to know about Canada's fight against the coronavirus. This week, Patricia Treble focuses on one story worth watching, and you can get a sneak peek here. You'll also get the same mix of Maclean's stories you expect every day if you scroll down below. On Monday, Dr. Deena Hinshaw, Alberta’s chief medical officer of health, announced the province had set a new record when it comes to COVID-19 cases, adding an average of 490 per day since Friday. Two weeks ago, its average was just 240 cases a day. The pile of new COVID-19 cases helps push the province’s active cases to a new record: 4,477 active cases. “We have now crossed a tipping point,” Hinshaw stated, “and are losing the balance we have been seeking” between “minimizing the risk of COVID-19 and minimizing the risk of harms of restrictions.” Last week, Hinshaw announced that, because of rising hospitalizations of COVID-19 patients, and other impacts of community spread, the government was postponing 30 per cent of non-urgent surgeries in the Edmonton Zone. In addition, at least four hospitals in Alberta were dealing with outbreaks at their institutions, meaning large numbers of medical personnel were in isolation. Affected staff have to use their sick days to cover their time away from work, unlike in the spring when the province had pandemic self-isolation pay to deal with such circumstances, while remaining workers are doing extra shifts to cover the gaps in care. READ MORE >> |