The Ontario Public Health Emergencies Science Advisory Committee prepared a report for the ON government in September 2023 titled: Scientific Report: Strengthening Ontario’s Respiratory Viral Surveillance System. Their recommendations did NOT include ending the program, a🧵: 1. The 1st statement in their executive summary:

“We urge the Government of Ontario to consider the following recommendations to strengthen Ontario’s
respiratory virus surveillance system in providing early warning, alert and response capability to prevent
the emergence of, or

Does Ford understand the gravity of what he's doing? We're about to see a tsunami of seniors emerge across Ontario & Canada. Investments in healthcare, public health/health promotion, & medical education should be Herculean NOW. Instead he's selling it piecemeal to the⬆️bidder. Quality nursing care has never been more important. Increasing nursing enrolment and free tuition are important initiatives. However, reducing the entrance averages and shortening the curriculum length poses risks to patients. We can do better.

@fordnation @ONThealth
Dear Premier,
I gave the CMOH an opportunity to reply to my questions about the public health measures employed and withdrawn in 2022. Specifically, I requested information on how the health inequities of the most vulnerable & marginalized were mitigated?

https://twitter.com/ccleighton/status/1666823962612101123

I also requested information about the proposed procurement of high-quality masks for students in the fall of 2022? Why didn't that happen?

What were the considerations given to vulnerable children such as the immunocompromised?

How is SARS-CoV-2 like another respiratory virus?

"Stepping Away from an Evidence-Based Public Health Policy and the Precautionary Principle During the Time of Omicron: Did the Ontario Government Fail to Consider the Potential Harms to Highly #COVID19 Vulnerable Ontarians?" 1/20 The Office of the CMOH (OCMOH) received my FOIPPA request on October 24, 2022: I requested the scientific evidence that CMOH relied upon to shorten isolation periods and that demonstrated one-way masking, presumably of the most vulnerable, was a safe approach. 2/20

FOI Analysis from the 29 documents provided by the Office of the CMOH RE: COVID-19 Public Health Policy adopted August 31, 2022, is finally done. I've shared my report with @maritstiles @NickelBelt and the @Ont_Ombudsman
It should be made public tomorrow. Have to give credit to DJC who read all 65 pages, edited and made it much better in a day. I hope people find it a fair analysis based on the information provided. It's an Op-Ed with evidence & policy to contrast what the government said it relied upon in withdrawing PH measures.

If #COVID19 is really subsiding in severity & prevalence like so many believe, then please explain the curves:
Cases in Canada appear to be on a disappearing course (Note the grey area is subject to adjustment as other cases are added and the last several months are incomplete) However, looking at deaths it looks like the same ole pandemic (the far end of the curve is highly inaccurate and incomplete ie, deaths will climb as more data arrives):

#COVID19 is still around despite what we may wish.
Windsor-Essex hospitalizations Feb 18: 66 confirmed or suspected; Feb 28: 100.
Coincides with a sewage peak on Feb 17 (2nd highest since May 2022)
Inpatient capacity in Windsor-Essex is at 104%.
Fortunately, there's a strategy. Unfortunately,
It's to test less often,
To distribute fewer #COVID19 rapid Ag tests,
To ignore the risks to the vulnerable: LTCH/RH residents, hospitalized patients & visitors, immunocompromised, persons with disabilities, radicalized minorities, and the impoverished.
#onpoli

My FOI to the Office of the Chief Medical Officer of Ontario is complete. I requested all scientific evidence that he relied upon to make the June 2022 decision to shorten the isolation period to 24 hours after resolution of fever & to end masking in public buildings and schools. The number of records decreased substantially from the initial search. Just 29 records were identified and a number of FOIPPA. A number of redactions are noted:
"Section 12 has been applied to a portion of the records to protect confidential cabinet records,
#onpoli #COVID19

The Office of the Chief Medical Officer of Health was granted a 2nd 60-day extension @ONThealth to reply to my October 25th, 2022, FOI request:
"On August 31, 2022, Chief Medical Officer of Health, Dr. Kieran Moore announced a public health policy change in which he stated... " "...it was permissible to go to work or into public buildings masked despite a recent COVID19 infection, provided the individual was afebrile for 24 hours and their symptoms were improving."

Windsor-Essex lost its public health laboratory in 2010 when it was closed against the advice of then MOH, Dr. Alen Heimann. Additional capacity for SARS-CoV-2 testing would have been available in 2020, had it remained. #onpoli
cbc.ca/news/canada/wi… In 2021, Windsor lost its Medical Officer of Health, Dr. W. Ahmed, who left to accept the role of Associate Chief Medical Officer of Health. Since that time we have had an Acting MOH who lives over 300 km away.
What's next, the elimination of @TheWECHU ?
@anthonyrleardi @LGretzky

Hybrid immunity comes at a cost - That aspect was missed from this editorial.
#LongCovid
Early Cardiovascular death.
Economic issues d/t illness, new-onset diabetes etc. & shrinking labour force.
One expert weighs in, Z. Chagla. 🙄

theglobeandmail.com/opinion/editor… A failure in public health @JustinTrudeau :
"just over half of all Canadians have gotten a first booster and only 24 percent have gotten a second. That’s despite the fact that the National Advisory Council on Immunization recommends boosters six months after the previous dose."

@BasuAshis SARS-CoV-2 in high concentrations has been recovered from the fluid of the middle ear following primary COVID19 infections. The Eustachian tube (connects the back of the throat to the middle ear) is rich in ACE-2 receptors (the primary binding receptor for SARS-CoV-2). @BasuAshis Tinnitus (the perception of a phantom auditory noise) is often accompanied with hearing loss. Inflammation of the auditory nerve (CN 8) is not rare following moderate to severe upper respiratory viral infections & may be associated with hearing loss & tinnitus, often temporary.

Asking @TELUS to step up and support a #TelusLetsMaskDay

Mental health is important and the Bell campaign has been extremely effective.

#COVID19 remains among the top 3 or 4 leading causes of death in Ontario. Vulnerable persons often cannot afford N95 masks. "Mask for them."

https://twitter.com/ONThealth/status/1617518695940513792

1. Media campaigns that embrace a "social good" provide effective brand recognition.
2. An opportunity to disseminate sound public health information on masking & vaccines in the absence of suitable messaging from @fordnation.
3. Give the vulnerable a voice.

This January 9, 2023, QP Briefing report from @jackhauen is probably the most under-reported story of the month:
‘Not always possible’ for top doctor to have final say on his statements, documents reveal. h/t @DFisman
#COVID19Ontario #onpoli
qpbriefing.com/2023/01/09/not… It tells the story of the decision to end all mask mandates in the province in early June 2022. It was a political decision planned months in advance per the exchanges between the Premier's Office, the Office of the CMOH, the Deputy MOH, and the Communications Team (PO & MOH).

Re-balancing my partner's UK Pension with @PhoenixGroupUK
I don't know what type of disclosure laws there are in the UK but they are grossly inadequate.
And some of these funds are so poorly managed/performing, for so long, that they should be reviewed by @TheFCA Five-year performance -20% on a FI/Cash Fund 😱.

Dr. Matt Strauss won’t miss public health — and vice versa thestar.com/opinion/star-c…

Thoughtful commentary by @bruce_arthur

"The purpose of life is not to stay alive as long as possible. The purpose of life is to live it.” __ MS

True, but life is not palliative care. That's the outlook we consider when someone progresses on 2nd line cancer treatment, or when a frail 80 yr-old individual develops pancreatic cancer where chemotherapy is difficult and may offer little benefit. Such statements devalue the lives of seniors, the immunocompromised,

Earlier I filed a @CdnHumanRights complaint v. @JustinTrudeau @jyduclos @OmarAlghabra for discrimination on the basis of disability due to the Oct 1, 2022, decision to remove mask requirements on planes and trains. Covid19-vulnerable Canadians should be able to travel safely. I received no reply to my September 27th letter. Hundreds of thousands of Canadians are at ⬆️risk of serious illness or death from COVID19. As the “average” Canadian attempts to resume a normal life, are we expected to shut up & isolate at home? #cdnpoli
ccleighton.medium.com/withdrawal-of-…

If the Premier will not act on physician, public health & infectious disease expert opinions, then we must protest in 2023. Use the democratic rights we have, the very freedoms people are fighting to keep in the Ukraine.
Let's garner his attention. Please RT.
#BoycottDecoLabels Businesses must consider other options for package labelling. There are many in Ontario.
If you value access to healthcare; or
If you value access to education where children are not off sick half the time, #FireDecoLabels
Other options:
canadianpackaging.com

RAT COVID TESTING:
It's so important that you swab the inside of your cheek (especially at the level of your upper & lower molars), under your tongue and the back of your throat before you swab your nose. Sensitivity of available RATs increases significantly with this approach. #Omicron loves your salivary glands. So swab where they empty.
We have known for sometime how to improve accuracy of RATs this season. Did the CMOH walk us through it once?

Time for School Boards to enact masking mandates.
Education Act R.S.O. 1990, c. E.2 169.1 "(1): Every board shall (a) promote student achievement and well-being;”.
1. shall = must (legal speaking)
2. well-being def'n: the state of being happy, healthy, or prosperous: WELFARE School boards and principals are charged with protecting the health of students, especially in respect to communicable disease.
@JacobShelley described, the CMOH doesn't appear once in the Education Act. Their approval is not required to enact local mask orders by boards.