CCBI Resources for Covid19 – February 12, 2021

Dear Friends of CCBI,

Nearly mid-February: snow is falling, the temperature is falling, and the numbers of COVID-19 cases and deaths are falling across the country! That is good news, yet news from provincial governments and public health officials seems mixed. Governments are understandably anxious to help businesses gain some foothold and to allow students to go back to the classroom, measured against warnings that it is too soon to be so open and that the virus variants could cause a ‘third wave’. It does seem that the second wave was caused by too early, too frequent, too large interactions by sizeable numbers of the population. It makes sense to me to ‘hunker down’ a little longer to see whether the numbers of cases continue to fall and to judge the effects of the mutated viruses, which we are told are more potent than the original, in order to prevent a more devastating third wave.

Whom to rely on for best evidence? The Ontario Chief Medical Officer of Health said today in an article in the The Globe and Mail: “We may be stopping the stay-at-home order, but we still want people to stay at home.” (!) Sorry, would you please repeat that? At the same meeting, one of Ontario’s COVID-19 science advisors, Adalsteinn (Steini) Brown, dean of the Dalla Lana School of Public Health at the University of Toronto, said, “that an aggressive vaccination campaign and ‘sticking with the stay-at-home order’ are needed to help avoid a third wave and a third lockdown.” According to him: “The modelling suggests that while cases and deaths are slowing for now, the new variants first found in Britain will cause infections to rebound – potentially exponentially – as early as the end of this month, threatening to send more patients into the province’s already strained hospitals.” That means we will see results of opening up in about two weeks. I’m a moral theologian, not a scientist, and need to rely on the best scientific evidence available. When that evidence is conflicted, it seems wiser to be cautious…in everyone’s long-term interests.

Last week we started to look a little more intensively at mental health issues, especially as exacerbated by the pandemic. At Toronto’s Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, internist geriatrician Mireille Norris is reported by The Globe as saying she is”… seeing grave and numerous consequences of loneliness and isolation among her older patients. Those living alone are experiencing more anxiety, some are consuming more alcohol, cannabis and other substances, and many are not getting out to walk as much, causing their mobility to decline.” Isolated patients can be afraid of being infected by the coronavirus and “are also delaying seeking care for serious health issues, including symptoms of heart attack and stroke.” In a related article in The Globe, Marcus Gee reported that the Canadian Mental Health Association said in December, “The second wave of the pandemic has intensified feelings of stress and anxiety, causing alarming levels of despair, suicidal thoughts and hopelessness in the Canadian population.” Gee reminded Canadians: “Well before the coronavirus came along, it was clear that Canada had to do more to grapple with the problem of mental illness. Toronto’s Centre for Addiction and Mental Health says ‘the disease burden of mental illness and addiction in Ontario is 1.5 times higher than all cancers put together … This includes years lived with less than full function and years lost to early death.’ “

Post-pandemic planning in this sector of health and social policy will hopefully be paid much more attention than it has ever received in this country, even although we already know that one out of every five people suffers from some form of mental health issue. We have been moving forward in removing stigma from many areas – this one should rank as one of the primary areas, if people are to experience what St Thomas Aquinas called ‘human flourishing.’

According to a CBC News report, “Not only do most seniors want to live at home for as long as possible, more of them actually could, according to a report released by the Canadian Institute for Health Information (CIHI) in August 2020.” Survey after survey has confirmed this unsurprising fact, and, as Dr Samir Sinha, head of geriatrics at Mount Sinai and University Health Network hospitals in Toronto relates: “The benefit of increased home-care investment in Canada is getting long-overdue attention, now that COVID-19 has torn through long-term care homes, killing thousands of residents and exposing lethal weaknesses in the system.” A clip embedded in the CBC report ( below) shows the benefits obtained in at least one family by looking after an elderly parent with dementia at home, made possible through a program begun in December through Ontario’s ‘High Intensity Supports at Home’ program, where personal support workers come in for several hours a day, as well as others who work with the person on cognitive development. It can be done!

The theme of caring for the elderly is movingly encouraged in a new document from the Pontifical Academy of Life, Old Age: Our Future – The elderly after the pandemic. The Academy confirms the ‘stay home as long as possible’ desire of many of our elders, (not the same thing as COVID-19 safeguards!), saying:

“Among the honours due to them, there is certainly the duty to create the best conditions for the elderly to live this particular stage of life where they have been for a lifetime, at home with one’s family if possible and with life-long friends. Who would not want to continue living at home, surrounded by those who are dearest, even when one becomes more fragile? The family, one’s own home, one’s own neighborhood, is the best choice for every aging man and woman.

Of course, without the support and solutions offered by home care services it will not always be possible to continue living where one lived when autonomous. There are situations where one’s home no longer meets requirements but in these circumstances we should take seriously Pope Francis’ warning not be ensnared by the “throw-away culture” that can result in laziness and lack of imagination in the search for effective solutions for loss of self-sufficiency in old age. Putting the person with his or her needs and rights at center stage is an expression of progress, of civilization and of authentic Christian consciousness.” Amen to that!

And, in case you did not see it, we’ve included Bambi’s thoughtful and prayerful reflection for CCBI’s annual statement on the occasion of the World Day of the Sick, February 11, 2021.

Our Lady, Health of the Sick, pray for us!

We pray for women who are victims of violence, that they may be protected by society and have their sufferings considered and heeded!

(Pope’s intention for February)

Moira and Bambi

Ontario could face third wave of COVID-19 if restrictions are eased – The Globe and Mail
Ontario’s own COVID-19 science advisers are warning against the provincial government’s plans to lift its stay-at-home order, as new modelling shows more contagious variants of the virus could …www.theglobeandmail.com

Loneliness and isolation during pandemic erode health and well-being for many who live alone
Hospital emergency departments see a significant rise in patients whose conditions are complicated by social isolation www.theglobeandmail.com

It’s time to get serious about mental health
The surge in mental distress during the pandemic spotlights the need to do more www.theglobeandmail.com

As COVID-19 exposes long-term care crisis, efforts grow to keep more seniors at home | CBC News
As the Ontario government pledges to build more long-term care beds, seniors’ advocates say that investing in robust home care would not only allow people to age where they want to be, but also …www.cbc.ca

Old age: our future. The Elderly after the pandemic (2 February 2021)
Old age: our future. The Elderly after the pandemic, 2 February 2021 www.vatican.va