Media Statement: COVID-19 Pandemic: ONA calls on Industry to Donate or Loan Proper Protective Equipment to Ontario Health-Care System

TORONTO, ON, April 6, 2020 – With confirmation from Premier Doug Ford that the province has just five days’ supply of proper protective equipment (PPE), the Ontario Nurses’ Association (ONA) is asking industry that has been shut down or are operating at a lesser capacity during the COVID-19 pandemic to loan or donate their equipment to front-line registered nurses and health professionals to keep them safe.

ONA President Vicki McKenna, RN, has been urging government for more than a week to provide information on the supply of PPE, and advising government to call on industry for donations.

She notes that there are plenty of masks that are reusable and higher quality than N95s and that many of our industries have supplies of other types of masks and higher levels of respiratory protection that will ensure front-line caregivers can be safe while providing the care that Ontarians need and deserve. The use of reusable, higher-than-N95 masks will also assist with the preservation of N95 masks for others as the province sources the purchase of additional PPE.

ONA is the union representing more than 68,000 registered nurses and health-care professionals, as well as 18,000 nursing student affiliates, providing care in hospitals, long-term care facilities, public health, the community, clinics and industry.

For more information:

Sheree Bond 416-986-8240; shereeb@ona.org