Some Nova Scotians worried about lack of asymptomatic COVID-19 testing options
There are a little more than 600 lab-confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Nova Scotia on Friday.
“There’s lots of cases in daycare centres currently,” says Donna Buckland, who operates a private daycare.
Buckland says the new government policies have removed rapid testing options from childcare facilities.
“I would love to see some better PPE. I’d love to see the KN95 masks at some point for childcare workers.... we are the only industry where our staff work with unmasked and unvaccinated public,” Buckland says.
A statement from Nova Scotia's Department of Health and Wellness states that most workplace testing has been paused, but adds the province's strategy is not written in stone.
The statement goes on to say “the program parameters will be re-evaluated in the context of our broader testing strategy once the current Omicron wave subsides.”
Rapid testing is continuing in correctional facilities, Department of Community Services and funded facilities, and in continuing care.
According to the executive director of the Nursing Homes of Nova Scotia Association, testing is being done, but not as often as previously.
“Rather than test more frequently, we are testing less frequently with twice a week or when required, and we are not using rapid testing for residents. Rather, we are watching for symptoms, monitoring and using PCR testing in those cases,” says Michele Lowe, executive director of Nursing Homes of Nova Scotia Association.
The change in the province's testing strategy is creating some confusion.
Nova Scotia's NDP Leader, Gary Burrill, says his concern isn't so much with the policies of the Department of Health and Wellness, but instead how those policies are being communicated.
“There’s a great responsibility on the government to speak on the issues related to testing with every bit of clarity, consistency, coherency that can be mustered,” Burrill says.
According to Burrill, the core problem with the reduction in rapid testing is the result of a lack of supply provided by the federal government.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
Northern Ont. lawyer who abandoned clients in child protection cases disbarred
A North Bay, Ont., lawyer who abandoned 15 clients – many of them child protection cases – has lost his licence to practise law.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Maple Leafs fall to Bruins in Game 3, trail series 2-1
Brad Marchand scored twice, including the winner in the third period, and added an assist as the Boston Bruins downed the Toronto Maple Leafs 4-2 to take a 2-1 lead in their first-round playoff series Wednesday
Cuban government apologizes to Montreal-area family after delivering wrong body
Cuba's foreign affairs minister has apologized to a Montreal-area family after they were sent the wrong body following the death of a loved one.
'It was instant karma': Viral video captures failed theft attempt in Nanaimo, B.C.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
What is changing about Canada's capital gains tax and how does it impact me?
The federal government's proposed change to capital gains taxation is expected to increase taxes on investments and mainly affect wealthy Canadians and businesses. Here's what you need to know about the move.
New Indigenous loan guarantee program a 'really big deal,' Freeland says at Toronto conference
Canada's Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland was among the 1,700 delegates attending the two-day First Nations Major Projects Coalition (FNMPC) conference that concluded Tuesday in Toronto.
'Life was not fair to him': Daughter of N.B. man exonerated of murder remembers him as a kind soul
The daughter of a New Brunswick man recently exonerated from murder, is remembering her father as somebody who, despite a wrongful conviction, never became bitter or angry.