Action Plan: PTs Employed by Long-Term Care and Retirement Homes

The government shared a new action plan to stop the spread of COVID-19 in long-term care and retirement homes.

Below is information for physiotherapists who work in these sectors about the government and College’s direction.

Physiotherapists may only work at one site

• On April 15, 2020, the Ontario government issued a new emergency order that limited long-term care home employees to working at only one location.
• On April 16, 2020, a similar emergency order was issued for retirement homes. Again, it limits employees to working at only one location.
• Effective Wednesday, April 22, 2020, long-term care providers and retirement home operators must ensure that employees who work at their facilities do not work at more than one long-term care facility, retirement home, or health care facility.

Urgent care only

Physiotherapists should also note that the government’s directive on urgent care is still in effect.

It states that physiotherapists who work in private practice, long-term care facilities, retirement homes and organizations that deliver home care services are restricted to providing urgent care only as per the government’s direction on April 4, 2020.

What constitutes urgent care

The College believes that urgent care includes assessment and therapeutic intervention or services for conditions or situations where not receiving physiotherapy services (whether in-person or virtually) would put the patient’s safety at risk, or there is potential for significant harm or significant adverse patient outcomes.

Significant harm or adverse outcomes means the patient may be at risk of hospital admission or re-admission, long-term incapacity, or harm.

Specifically, situations which could be considered urgent under this definition include:

• A patient who is currently experiencing incapacitating neuromusculoskeletal dysfunction or pain.
• Any scenario where the inability to initiate care or the withdrawal of care would lead to the significant deterioration of a patient’s condition and the patient is at risk for imminent hospital admission or re-admission.
• Post-operative care immediately following surgery when necessary for cardiorespiratory and essential functional mobilization as an in-patient to prevent the delay of a patient being discharged home to the community.
• Follow-up immediately post-discharge from hospital to the community to ensure safe return to home and prevent re-admission to the hospital.
• A patient who has suffered burns that are incapacitating in nature.
• The patient is an individual such as a health care provider in an essential service in an acute care setting or other setting deemed to be essential, whose injury or condition requires physiotherapy care to return to work safely as soon as possible.

Your obligation as a Physiotherapist

In keeping with the government’s action plan to stop the spread of COVID-19 in long-term care and retirement homes, the College believes that preventing the transmission of COVID- 19 is of the highest priority in protecting the public interest.

As such, the College is reminding physiotherapists working in these sectors of their professional obligations to follow the government’s directives and the College’s guidance.

Should the College become aware of physiotherapists who have not followed these expectations the College may be required to take action.

Should you have any questions about your situation or the College and government’s direction, please feel free to reach out to our Practice Advice team. They can be reached at advice@collegept.org or 1-800-583-5885 ext. 241.