FSAC's COVID-19 Press Release Featured in 4 Major Canadian Newspapers
jgreen • April 2, 2020
Reposted from Toronto Sun, Ottawa Sun, Calgary Sun, and Sudbury Star
The Funeral Service Association of Canada says it is ready to serve during the COVID-19 crisis.
“Our members, who are funeral professionals located across Canada, are doing their best to serve the needs of the communities they serve during this pandemic,” said Brett Watson, president of the FSAC.
“We want to reassure Canadians that we continue to support grieving families and that their loved ones are still able to receive dignified funerals.”
Recommendations by the federal government and provincial governments to work from home and self-isolate does impact funeral providers, but the profession continues to operate.
Watson said funerals continue to take place with smaller gatherings limited to immediate family and with limited interaction between mourners.
All physical contact is discouraged.
“Unfortunately, Canada has seen its first deaths in several provinces due to COVID-19,” Watson said. “Funeral professionals are on the frontline of dealing with the deceased of this virus, and while we stand ready to serve, the health and safety of our professionals must be considered.”
Personal Protective Equipment is required for funeral providers to handle the deceased in a safe and sanitary way.
Gloves, masks and gowns are all part of the required protocols for routine practices and there are additional precautions for mortuary care.
Community and Public Health depends on the safe and sanitary handling of deceased persons.
Difficulty obtaining Personal Protective Equipment impacts funeral workers too, potentially impeding their ability to serve the needs of their communities.
“Although some provinces have designated death care professionals including funeral, crematorium and cemetery workers as essential, but others have not, we are calling on all governments to take the necessary actions to make funeral professionals an essential service and provide them with the necessary Personal Protective Equipment in order to allow them to continue to perform their duties,” Watson said.
“Our members are ready to continue serving their communities with the right government framework in place.”
As of Thursday morning, there were 818 COVID-19 cases in Toronto with 19 deaths. In Ontario, there has 2,392 cases with 37 deaths. And nationally, there have been 9,731 cases and 111 deaths.
FSAC has received a letter from the National Advisory Committee on Immunization, confirming that frontline essential workers are recommend to be vaccinated in the 2nd round of vaccinations. Read the full letter below.
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Information on Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) / Mise à jour : Informations sur maladie à coronavirus
Information on Coronavirus disease (COVID-19)
FSAC Receives Acknowledgement of Priority Consideration for Vaccine
December 3 rd , 2020 Dr. Matthew Tunis Executive Secretary, National Advisory Committee on Immunization 130 Colonnade Road Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0K9 Dear Dr. Tunis, Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, deathcare workers in Canada have worked alongside frontline healthcare workers to ensure that the deceased from the virus are safely dealt with. We have appreciated Health Canada’s and the Public Health Agency of Canada’s support with the provinces to ensure that our sector is supplied with personal protective equipment (PPE) and through other means. However, as news emerges of potential vaccines on the horizon, I am writing you regarding the priority sequence for vaccination. While we encourage frontline healthcare workers who deal with COVID-19 patients on a daily basis to be at the top of the list for vaccinations, we believe because of the risk that our sector takes on that deathcare workers should have priority over the general public. When an individual passes away from COVID-19, the responsibility falls to deathcare workers to ensure that the body is properly dealt with in a safe manner in order to not spread the disease further. Our workers attend the facilities in which the death occurred and interact with staff that have been directly exposed to the virus, which represents an increased risk to the individual. While deathcare workers have been specifically trained to minimize risk through procedural alterations and use of PPE, this does not remove the potential for infection completely. This is why we believe the federal government must work with its provincial counterparts in ensuring that deathcare workers are included in the list of priority for vaccination. The National Academies of Science Engineering and Medicine (NASEM) in the U.S. recently released their framework which included deathcare workers in the highest priority phase for vaccine allocation, and we believe Canada should follow suit. Should you have any questions, please feel free to reach me at info@fsac.ca . We understand that your office is preoccupied with this situation, and appreciate any time you can give to considering our members. Thank you, Allan Cole President Funeral Service Association of Canada 800-1730 boul. St. Laurent Blvd., Ottawa, ON K1G 3Y7 613-505-0277 · info@fsac.ca · www.fsac.ca
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