Ontario reported a new high of 3,220 patients in hospital with COVID-19 on Tuesday, while Health Minister Christine Elliott said the province would deploy internationally trained nurses to health-care settings strained by staffing shortages. "We are seeing a historic moment here," said Anthony Dale, president and CEO of the Ontario Hospital Association in an interview with CBC News Network. (Evan Mitsui/CBC) 5:50Meanwhile, at a news conference Tuesday, Elliott said the province is collaborating with Ontario Health and the Colleges of Nurses of Ontario to deploy internationally trained nurses to hospitals and some long-term care settings. WATCH | Absenteeism the 'acute' health-care challenge, says Ontario Health CEO:Absenteeism the 'acute' health-care challenge, says Ontario Health CEO Duration 2:51 While absenteeism is the big strain on Ontario's health-care system right now, redeploying personnel and a new program for international volunteers should help fill in any gaps, says Ontario Health CEO Matthew Anderson. For the 45,451 tests that were completed, Public Health Ontario reported a positivity rate of 24.4 per cent.

Source: CBC News January 12, 2022 13:28 UTC