How much protective equipment does Canada really need for COVID-19? -

In a high-profile announcement by the Liberals, it was stated that Automotive giant General Motors would make 10 million medical masks omitted a detail that speaks to the long road ahead in the fight against COVID-19.

The masks will be made over the next year. So too will much of the millions of gowns, gloves, and liters of hand sanitizer that are part of the federal government’s bulky buy of crucial personal protective gear needed to help slow the spread of COVID-19.

Though goods are being handed out as soon as they arrive in Canada, the reality is many of the orders being placed will not meet the demand created by the current outbreak of COVID-19.

Hospitals and the public watched in horror as shortages in other countries of the key piece of equipment required to treat the most severe form of the illness had devastating results.

Sadly, there is a bigger issue. There is an unpredictability about the way in which the virus might spread in the coming months. The approach was to order supplies over and above the requests of the provinces and territories so that if there is a second wave.

At the outset of the pandemic’s arrival in Canada, the issue of how many ventilators Canada had was of pressing concern.

Hospitals and the public watched in horror as shortages in other countries of the key piece of equipment required to treat the most severe form of the illness had devastating results.

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