MEDIA STATEMENT
March 30, 2020
Media statement regarding PPE standards, conservation and work refusal process
Our top priority continues to be ensuring the safety of all patients, staff, and physicians at London Health Sciences Centre (LHSC). The COVID-19 situation is very fluid and we continue to modify our operations as a result of provincial directives.
LHSC is providing staff and physicians with the necessary personal protective equipment (PPE) in alignment with the direction provided by the Ministry of Health, which includes guidance on risk stratification of patients. Everyone in our organization has an important role to play in adhering to conservation measures that ensure we use PPE appropriately and will have appropriate levels of PPE available to meet the current and future needs of our patients. LHSC will continue to take an evidence-informed approach to these issues, ensuring that we follow government directives and the best advice of our Infection Prevention and Control medical experts.
We recognize that the quickly changing nature of this public health emergency is creating anxiety and uncertainty for our care teams and we are working through the well-established processes to resolve any work refusals and clarify misinterpretations regarding appropriate PPE use. In the single work refusal that was received at LHSC last week, the Ministry of Labour was engaged as per usual process and found that LHSC’s process and policies that follow the Ministry of Heath guidelines are appropriate.
LHSC will continue to review its situation daily based on new emerging data, provincial directives, and supply chain information. We remain steadfast in our commitment to protecting our staff, physicians, and patients as the situation continues to develop.
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