PHSS and our partners have sent the attached release to our Mayors, City Councils, MPs and MPPs, our networks, and media contacts, asking them to lend their collective voices to advocate for the health and safety of the people we support. Please feel free to share this information with your contacts, and if you would like to lend your voice to our efforts, we encourage you to write to your local MPP.
Any questions can be sent to Brian Dunne at briand@phsscommunity.com
News release – April 23, 2021
Click here for the release in PDF format: Triage Protocol Continues to Threaten Disability Community
Triage Protocol Continues to Threaten Disability Community
By Brian Dunne, President and Chief Executive Officer at PHSS, and Ron Coristine, Executive Director at Community Living Chatham-Kent
As advocates for Ontario’s disability community, we continue to be dismayed at the priority the Ontario government appears to be placing on the lives of the 1.85 million Ontarians with disabilities. While we, and other organizations, have been asking for transparency on the critical care triage protocol, the updates received come from the media, not our provincial government.
Our government remains silent on the triage protocol that will be used by hospitals in the event resources are overwhelmed due to an influx of patients with COVID-19.
The recent news that an online calculator could disqualify adults with disabilities from receiving critical medical care is particularly concerning. Imagine having a loved one contract COVID-19, then learning they will be denied access to a ventilator based upon a score given by an online “short-term mortality risk” calculator. Sure, they may have challenges getting dressed or bathing on their own, but that does not mean they ought to be denied priority for ICU spots.
Community approach needed
Despite being one year into COVID-19, the Ontario government continues to be secretive in its decision making around the critical care triage protocol as well as the vaccination rollout. They have had minimal consultation with the communities most impacted by their decisions, despite many efforts by these communities and organizations to collaborate and share expertise.
The Ontario Hospital Association is now sounding the alarm that critical care units are reaching a “saturation point” and “hospitals will be under extraordinary pressure to try and ensure equitable access to lifesaving critical care.”
With COVID-19 cases rising rapidly, the lack of information regarding critical care triage is troubling for individuals who have disabilities, as medical staff may determine who receives life-saving critical care based a score generated by a calculator.
Valuing human life
As organizations that value and recognize the contributions of individuals who have disabilities, we are asking the government to be transparent in how patients will be triaged to receive critical care.
We join the Ontario Human Rights Commission and other disability rights organizations, in demanding that our government publicly release the critical care triage protocols. We are also asking the government to ensure that individuals with disabilities receive the critical care they need if they become seriously ill.
We know that every human life is as valuable as the next. We hope that our provincial government will also see the value of all Ontarians – regardless of their ability.
News release – January 15, 2021
Click here for the release in PDF format: Ontario-Government-Asked-to-Remove-Secrecy-and-Release-COVID-19-Critical-Care-Triage-Protocol.pdf
Ontario Government Asked to Remove Secrecy and Release COVID-19 Critical Care Triage Protocol
Did you know your child, parent or neighbour could be denied critical care based on pre-existing conditions or assumptions healthcare professionals make regarding their quality of life versus ability to recover from COVID-19?
There remains much uncertainty about what level of healthcare Ontarians who have disabilities will receive if they contract COVID-19. Despite the Ontario Government having cancelled a controversial critical care triage protocol that disproportionately impacted individuals with disabilities, they have yet to publicly release the new triage protocol submitted by the Bioethics Table in September.
“It’s unacceptable that Ontarians still have not seen the triage protocol to be used by hospitals in the event resources are overwhelmed due to an influx of patients with COVID-19,” explains Brian Dunne, President and CEO of Participating Housing Supports and Services (PHSS). “This protocol could be used to determine who is refused the critical care they need.”
“While we know the previous triage document disproportionately impacted the 1.85 million Ontarians who have a disability, we are still waiting to see its replacement,” says Ron Coristine, Executive Director of Community Living Chatham-Kent. “This despite the fact the Ontario Human Rights Commission has called for its public release and stated it has concerns about human rights issues in the report.”
“As organizations that value and recognize the contributions of individuals who have disabilities, we are calling on the Ontario government to immediately make public the Bioethics Table’s report and recommendations,” says Roxanna Spruyt-Rocks, CEO of DeafBlind Ontario Services. “This is a human rights issue that impacts one in seven Ontarians. We cannot remain silent as life and death decisions are made that potentially discriminate against individuals who have disabilities.”
With COVID-19 cases rising rapidly, the lack of information regarding a potential new triage document continues to put individuals who have disabilities at risk as medical staff may determine who receives life-saving critical care based on stereotypes or assumptions about disabilities.
As organizations that value and recognize the contributions of individuals who have disabilities, we are calling on the Ontario government to take the following actions:
- Immediately release the new Bioethics Table report and recommendations
- Hold open, accessible and inclusive consultation on how critical care triage decisions should be made
- Develop and make public any new directives or protocols related to critical care triage
- Ensure the constitutional and human rights of all patients, including individuals who have disabilities, are respected
“We are asking residents to email or call their MPP, demanding the Ontario Government release the Bioethics Table’s critical care triage report,” says Dunne. “We all have a right to see how life and death decisions will be made that could impact our parents, friends and family members.”
About PHSS, DeafBlind Ontario Services, and Community Living Chatham-Kent
Sharing a common mission of supporting individuals who have disabilities, we have formed an integrative partnership to strengthen the collective abilities of our three organizations. Our goal is to share knowledge and explore efficiencies, ensuring the people we serve who have unique, specialized, and complex needs are the number one priority. Together, we support over 930 individuals and their families, employ over 1,185 people and operate in over 110 locations throughout Ontario.
