2-hour wildfire evacuation notice issued for some Fort McMurray neighbourhoods
A wildfire evacuation alert for some Fort McMurray residents has been updated to a two-hour evacuation notice.
As COVID-19 continues to infect tens of thousands of Canadians every day, a Toronto doctor is worried that that could also result in an explosion of people with long-haul COVID-19 symptoms, potentially creating a "mass disabling event."
Long COVID-19, also known as post COVID-19 condition, occurs when symptoms of the disease continue to linger for weeks or months after the initial recovery period. For some patients, the symptoms are so debilitating, they're unable to work.
"Because COVID-19 is a multi-system illness, people can have extreme fatigue to the point of not being able to get out of bed or find it very hard to engage in physical activity," palliative care physician Dr. Amit Arya told CTV's Your Morning on Thursday.
Other possible long COVID-19 symptoms include cardiovascular issues, respiratory symptoms such as shortness of breath and even memory impairment.
While it's still unclear how many people with COVID-19 end up with long-term symptoms, Arya says the estimates are as low as 10 per cent to as high as one in three, citing data collected before the rise of the Omicron variant. A Lancet study from July 2021 also found that 96 per cent of people with long COVID-19 can experience symptoms for longer than three months.
"It could be even up to half a million Canadians who have experienced long COVID," he said.
Many of these people who experience long COVID-19 never require hospitalization. "We might assume that they have mild illness, but that is not the case for people who are suffering from the impacts of long COVID," Arya said.
A May 2021 survey of more than 1,000 COVID-19 long-haulers in Canada found that 60 per cent of respondents had to take time off from work due to their long-term symptoms and 69 per cent had to reduce their workload. Health Canada also says 10 per cent of those with long COVID-19 are left unable to return to work in the long term.
"The symptoms can fluctuate, but once again … there's many people who cannot return to work and may be living with a severe disability," Arya said.
Given that surging COVID-19 cases could result in an increase in the number of Canadians living with disabilities due to long-haul symptoms, Arya says it underscores the need to strengthen disability supports such as access to rehabilitation centres and social assistance.
"We're not seeing that people have access to those resources. And of course, for people with who are living with a disability, whether it's long COVID or not, we need to empower them with the resources and the tools that they need to survive this Omicron wave and beyond," he said.
Last summer, the federal government introduced Bill C-35, which would create the Canada Disability Benefit and provide a basic income support for low-income Canadians with disabilities. Disability advocates are urging the feds to fast-track the bill.
"People with disabilities cannot wait for consultations. They need to be able to pay for basic pain medications. They shouldn't have to make difficult choices in this pandemic, just because they live with a disability and are finding themselves in deep poverty,” said Rabia Khedr, national director of Disability Without Poverty, in an interview with CTV's Your Morning on Thursday.
A wildfire evacuation alert for some Fort McMurray residents has been updated to a two-hour evacuation notice.
Saskatchewan RCMP are set to provide an update on what the service calls a 'significant' sexual assault and internet child exploitation investigation.
Canadian LifeLabs customers who filed an application for a class-action settlement began receiving their payments this week, though at a much lower amount than initially expected.
Nobel laureate Alice Munro, the Canadian literary giant who became one of the world's most esteemed contemporary authors and one of history's most honoured short story writers, has died at age 92.
Wildfires have led Environment Canada to issue air quality advisories for parts of B.C., Alberta, Manitoba, Saskatchewan and the Northwest Territories, as forecasters warn the smoke could drift farther east.
An American accused of sexually assaulting a Pennsylvania college student in 2013 and later sending her a Facebook message that said, 'So I raped you,' has been detained in France after a three-year search.
The annual list of Canada's top restaurants in the country was just released and here are the places that made the 2024 cut.
Ontario Provincial Police are responding to a fatal collision involving two vehicles on Highway 417 in Ottawa's west end on Tuesday morning.
The Israeli flag is flying at Ottawa City Hall today to mark the country's national day, with plans to hold a private ceremony to mark Israel's Independence Day. There is a significant police presence at City Hall, including security barriers outside the main doors.
A team is ready to help an entangled North Atlantic right whale in the Gulf of St. Lawrence.
A $200 reward is being offered by a North Vancouver family for the safe return of their beloved chicken, Snowflake.
Two daughters and a mother were reunited online 40 years later thanks to a DNA kit and a Zoom connection despite living on three separate continents and speaking different languages.
Mother's Day can be a difficult occasion for those who have lost or are estranged from their mom.
YES Theatre Young Company opened its acclaimed kids’ show, One Small Step, at Sudbury Theatre Centre on Saturday.
An Ottawa pizzeria is being recognized as one of the top 20 deep-dish pizzas in the world.
A family of fifth generation farmers from Ituna, Sask. are trying to find answers after discovering several strange objects lying on their land.
A Listowel, Ont. man, drafted by the Hamilton Tigercats last week, is also getting looks from the NFL, despite only playing 27 games of football in his life.
The threat of zebra mussels has prompted the federal government to temporarily ban watercraft from a Manitoba lake popular with tourists.