Reinforcements arrive at CHEO and CUPE releases contract vote results: Five stories to watch this week
Reinforcements arrive at CHEO and CUPE releases contract vote results: Five stories to watch this week
CHEO released a video on Friday showing patients and parents waiting in the hallways of the emergency department. (CHEO/Vimeo)
A small team of staff from the Canadian Red Cross begin work this week at CHEO, the union representing education workers release the results of the contract ratification vote and all eyes on respiratory viruses as the countdown begins to Christmas.
CTVNewsOttawa.ca looks at five stories to watch in Ottawa this week.
HELP ARRIVES AT CHEO
A small team of staff from the Canadian Red Cross will arrive at Ottawa's children's hospital this week to assist nurses and staff respond to "unprecedented volumes" of patients during respiratory virus season.
CHEO is partnering with the Red Cross to provide assistance to clinical teams leading up to the holiday season.
"This will allow some of our redeployed staff to go back to their regular roles and ensure Team CHEO can provide the safe, world-class care that our patients deserve," CHEO Chief Nursing Executive Tammy DiGiovanni said in a statement to CTV News Ottawa.
CHEO has been seeing a surge in patients with respiratory viruses this fall, forcing the hospital to cancel non-urgent surgeries and procedures, open a second pediatric intensive care unit and redeploy staff from surgical and medical care units. Patients aged 16 and 17 are also being transferred to adult hospitals in Ottawa.
DiGiovanni says CHEO has asked for extra support from organizations across the region, including Roger Neilson House, Ottawa Public Health and local hospitals for staff, equipment and accommodating patient transfers.
EDUCATION WORKERS UNION RELEASE VOTE RESULTS
The union representing 55,000 education workers across Ontario will release the results of its contract ratification vote on Monday morning.
The Canadian Union of Public Employees reached a tentative agreement Nov. 20, averting a strike that would have closed schools in Ottawa and eastern Ontario.
CUPE says the proposed four-year contract includes an average 3.59 per cent wage increase each year.
If CUPE members vote to reject the latest deal, both sides could return to the bargaining table and CUPE could give another strike notice.
CUPE represents education workers at the Ottawa Catholic School Board, and Ottawa's two French language school boards.
Education workers and supporters hold a political protest outside the office of MPP Lisa MacLeod on Greenbank Road. CUPE is protesting the Ontario government's move to impose a four year contract on union members. (Tyler Fleming/CTV News Ottawa)
OTTAWA CITY COUNCIL MEETS
Elected officials will vote on two major reports setting the stage for the new term of council on Wednesday, the final scheduled meeting of the 2022 year at Ottawa City Hall.
The first big item on the agenda is the 2022-2026 Council Governance Review, outlining council and committee structures, policies, procedures and other related issues.
Recommendations include removing citizen transit commissioners from the transit commission, separate the Community and Protective Services Committee into two committees and that the deputy mayors be appointed by rotation instead of two or three deputy mayors for the full term.
The second report will give directions for staff to develop the 2023 city of Ottawa budget. The report recommends drafting the budget with a 2 to 2.5 per cent property tax hike, which was a campaign promise from Mayor Mark Sutcliffe. The report does warn COVID-19 and inflationary pressures could affect the budget, and proposals to address increased costs will be included in the budget.
Each councillor will also have five minutes during Wednesday's meeting to make opening remarks for the session.
Education workers and supporters hold a political protest outside the office of MPP Lisa MacLeod on Greenbank Road. CUPE is protesting the Ontario government's move to impose a four year contract on union members. (Tyler Fleming/CTV News Ottawa)
RESPIRATORY VIRUS SEASON
All eyes will be on respiratory viruses circulating in Ottawa, three weeks before Christmas.
Ottawa Public Health says overall trends with COVID-19 monitoring indicators are down this week compared to a month ago, but wastewater viral signals show "very high" levels of influenza and "moderate levels" of RSV.
OPH data shows a flu testing positivity rate of 27.5 per cent for the week ending Nov. 26, up from 23.4 per cent for the week ending Nov. 19.
"The levels of respiratory viruses circulating in our community remain high," OPH said on Twitter.
"Remember: the things we learned throughout the pandemic to limit the spread of COVID-19 (like wearing masks & staying home if sick) will also help limit the spread of viruses like RSV & the flu."
Trevor Fowler receives his flu shot from Barrhaven pharmacist Mohammed Manji. (Peter Szperling/CTV News Ottawa)
SENATORS HOST INDIGENOUS PEOPLES APPRECIATION NIGHT
The Ottawa Senators host their fourth annual Indigenous Peoples Appreciation Night on Tuesday night at Canadian Tire Centre.
The Senators say the night will celebrate and engage the Algonquin Anishinaabeg Nation, the ancestral unceded land on which Canadian Tire Centre sits.
The event will include a hockey clinic for Indigenous youth from communities around the region, an Indigenous artisans' market on the 200 level concourse, and Black Bear singers.
The Senators host Los Angeles Tuesday night at Canadian Tire Centre.'The Canadian Tire Centre will remain the home of the Ottawa Senators as the club takes the next step in building a new arena at LeBreton Flats. (Dave Charbonneau/CTV News Ottawa)
Two children are dead and six others are injured after a Laval city bus crashed into a daycare Wednesday morning. The driver of the bus, a 51-year-old man, has been arrested and faces charges of homicide and dangerous driving, police say.
The Bank of Canada released a summary of its Governing Council meetings on Wednesday, providing the public and financial institutions with more insight into the central bank’s decision to raise its key interest rate on Jan. 25.
Netflix Canada is rolling out its long-anticipated plans to crack down on password sharing, saying it will begin notifying Canadian users today by email about limitations.
An 'awkward' attempt at a handshake between Alberta Premier Danielle Smith and the prime minister Tuesday is another example of leaders from the western province hesitating before shaking Justin Trudeau's hand, say political experts.
The sacrifices female killer whales continue to make for their sons well after they are weaned is negatively affecting their reproductive health, according to new scientific research.
In the aftermath of the deadly earthquake that struck Syria and Turkiye, Canadians are donating money and supplies to rescue and relief efforts there. CTVNews.ca rounds up ways you can contribute to charities based in Canada and abroad.
An associate of Ontario’s self-described “crypto king” was operating his own fraud scam parallel to the multi-million dollar Ponzi scheme, court documents allege.
Many Canadians are experiencing strains caused by the increased cost of living and inflation. In his exclusive column for CTVNews.ca, contributor Christopher Liew shares some of the top credits and deductions that you may be able to claim on your income tax return to help you save money.
There was drama in a Halifax courtroom Wednesday as a Crown prosecutor tried to poke holes in the alibi of a former medical school student who is claiming self-defence in the shooting death of another student during a drug deal.
An Ontario lawyer who filed a $229-million lawsuit against his former “sugar baby” for alleged fraud had his case dismissed after the court found he'd become "obsessed" with the young woman when she attempted to end their arrangement.
A Toronto father was working Saturday afternoon when he got a notification from an app connected to his home security system. And what he saw on his phone was every parent's worst nightmare.
An associate of Ontario’s self-described “crypto king” was operating his own fraud scam parallel to the multi-million dollar Ponzi scheme, court documents allege.
Two children are dead and six others are injured after a Laval city bus crashed into a daycare Wednesday morning. The driver of the bus, a 51-year-old man, has been arrested and faces charges of homicide and dangerous driving, police say.
Justin Trudeau has thrown in the towel in the fight to maintain the federal role as gatekeeper of a public, universal, accessible and fair health-care system in Canada, writes former NDP leader Tom Mulcair in an exclusive column for CTVNews.ca. 'That could have tragic consequences for folks on the lower rungs of the social and economic ladder.'
Police are investigating after a bar in Montreal North appears to have been the scene of an arson early Wednesday morning. There were no reported injuries, but the flames seriously damaged the building and forced residents upstairs to evacuate temporarily.
The wait is over for ticketholders in the latest Canadian Hard of Hearing Association's Ultimate Dream Home Draw as Pure Country Sudbury morning show hosts pulled the names of the prize winners Wednesday afternoon.
Eighty-four bricks of suspected cocaine were seized from a commercial truck allegedly attempting to smuggle the drugs into Canada at the Blue Water Bridge, border officials say.
Team Lawes vice Selena Njegovan will be able to serve in a support role at the Scotties Tournament of Hearts after all despite initially being told she'd have limited access on site while on pregnancy leave.
Two children are dead and six others are injured after a Laval city bus crashed into a daycare Wednesday morning. The driver of the bus, a 51-year-old man, has been arrested and faces charges of homicide and dangerous driving, police say.
A memorial has been set up in the area where 30-year-old Karen Cunningham’s body was found, as police in Woodstock continue to investigate her death as “suspicious” in nature.
In the wake of several Google employees being laid off in Waterloo region, a national business council for tech firms says they’ve already had a number of CEOs in the tech sector ready to connect with those who lost their job.
The Calgary Police Service asked residents of a northwest neighbourhood to shelter in their homes as officers responded to a situation Wednesday morning involving a firearm.
If you're a FortisAlberta customer who owns an electric vehicle, the company is looking for your help with a pilot program that will test the limits of Alberta's electrical infrastructure.
Saskatoon's Ward 3 city councillor David Kirton decided to cancel his “Coffee with the Councillor” event scheduled for Saturday afternoon at Confederation Mall because of what he calls threatening phone calls and emails which became a “cause for concern”.
Saskatchewan underestimated how many rapid antigen tests were needed during the height of the fourth wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, while also touting the tests as a key part of its plan to halt transmission of the virus, internal emails indicate.
The Alberta government is moving ahead with a plan that would give oil and gas companies a tax break for meeting their legal obligations to clean up old well sites, inviting a select group of landowner organizations to a meeting to discuss a pilot project.
An 'awkward' attempt at a handshake between Alberta Premier Danielle Smith and the prime minister Tuesday is another example of leaders from the western province hesitating before shaking Justin Trudeau's hand, say political experts.
The latest B.C. Labour Market Outlook forecasts employment in the province will reach 3.1 million jobs by 2032 – half a million more than there were last year.
Charges have now been laid against a tug and barge company and one of its senior officials two years after a tug sank off British Columbia's coast south of Kitimat, killing the captain and one crew member.
Saskatchewan underestimated how many rapid antigen tests were needed during the height of the fourth wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, while also touting the tests as a key part of its plan to halt transmission of the virus, internal emails indicate.
CHEO released a video on Friday showing patients and parents waiting in the hallways of the emergency department. (CHEO/Vimeo)
Education workers and supporters hold a political protest outside the office of MPP Lisa MacLeod on Greenbank Road. CUPE is protesting the Ontario government's move to impose a four year contract on union members. (Tyler Fleming/CTV News Ottawa) 
Trevor Fowler receives his flu shot from Barrhaven pharmacist Mohammed Manji. (Peter Szperling/CTV News Ottawa)
The Canadian Tire Centre will remain the home of the Ottawa Senators as the club takes the next step in building a new arena at LeBreton Flats. (Dave Charbonneau/CTV News Ottawa)
