| Q-4462 — October 1, 2009 — — With respect to the current pandemic of new influenza A (H1N1): (a) what is the key leadership shown by the organizational reporting chart, from the two lead Ministries, the Public Health Agency of Canada and Public Safety Canada, through to the deputy ministers; (b) what is the decision-making process to determine which of the two Ministries leads on issues; (c) what, if any, funding requests have been made by government departments for pandemic planning since the beginning of the pandemic in Canada; (d) what, if any, additional funding is required to ensure all government departments have tested their H1N1 plans and rolled them out to their employees; (e) what, if any, specific agreements have been signed with the provinces and territories, and which, if any, agreements still need to be signed; (f) what are the government’s identified critical services, what is the decision-making process to reduce services if required, and who has responsibility for these decisions; (g) how will the government acquire and distribute medical countermeasures if required; (h) what guidance is being provided to foreign missions, including consulates, embassies, high commissions and trade offices, and what is the decision-making process to reduce services, or repatriate staff; (i) what guidance is being provided to the Canadian Forces, including the army, the air force and the navy, and what recommendations are being made for military personnel; (j) with regard to recommendations being made to the Canadian Forces and military personnel concerning vaccinations, what processes are in place to (i) re-evaluate policies as required, (ii) ensure legal compliance and respect ethical considerations, (iii) ensure protection of our troops in Afghanistan; (k) on what date was the pandemic vaccine ordered, and what, if any, effect did having only one supplier, or the decision to use adjuvant, had on the delivery date for the H1N1 vaccine; (l) what, if any, actions is the government taking to investigate claims of unpublished Canadian data regarding vaccination, and what updates are available in Canada and internationally; (m) what, if any, recommendations will the government make in terms of timing of seasonal and H1N1 vaccines, why was priority setting or sequencing different from that of the World Health Organization, and what considerations have been given to possible impacts of varying provincial and territorial vaccination plans on short-term and long-term trust in public health officials and vaccination rates; (n) what, if any, oversight exists to ensure Canadian communities have H1N1 pandemic plans in place, and what specific recommendations are being made for those who live in poverty or in crowded housing conditions, including prisons and shelters; (o) what, if any, gaps exist in medical surge capacity; (p) what, if any, monitoring is being undertaken for influenza-like illness in daycares, schools, colleges, and universities, and, if so, what patterns are occurring; (q) what percentage of people who died of H1N1 during the last four months had secondary bacterial infection, and what, if any, underlying health conditions did they have, and how might possible secondary bacterial infections be reduced in at-risk populations; (r) what, if any, ethical guidelines are in place to allow for consistent decision-making regarding ventilators; (s) what research, if any, has been undertaken to determine what percentage of healthcare workers might be concerned to work during a possible second wave, and what mitigating efforts have been taken to address this possible challenge; (t) what, if any, recommendations exist regarding “duty to care” and institutional supports to healthcare workers during a pandemic; (u) what efforts are being taken to boost vaccination rates among pregnant women, and how is this information being conveyed to medical practitioners and expectant mothers; (v) what, if any, consideration has been given to the construction of field hospitals in remote and isolated areas; (w) with historical hindsight, and knowledge of increased vulnerability to H1N1 of Aboriginal communities due to underlying health conditions and socio-economic problems, what, if any, containment measures were taken to slow the spread of the H1N1 virus in the spring; (x) what preventive and treatment measures are being implemented to reduce the percentage of Aboriginal people who will be hospitalized, who will stay in intensive care units, and who will die, compared to the whole of the Canadian population; and (y) what, if any, consideration has been given to share a portion of Canada’s antiviral medication, vaccine allotments, and flu management kits with developing countries? |