The National Emergency Stockpile System (NESS) is a federal

Government of Canada The government of Canada (french: gouvernement du Canada) is the body responsible for the federal administration of Canada. A constitutional monarchy, the Crown is the corporation sole, assuming distinct roles: the executive, as the ''Crown ...

response to the needs of the health care system in case of an emergency. It is a responsibility of the

Public Health Agency of Canada The Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC; french: Agence de la santé publique du Canada, ASPC) is an agency of the Government of Canada that is responsible for public health, emergency preparedness and response, and infectious and chronic dis ...

(PHAC).

Synopsis

The NESS is: The NESS anticipates a

pandemic A pandemic () is an epidemic of an infectious disease that has spread across a large region, for instance multiple continents or worldwide, affecting a substantial number of individuals. A widespread endemic (epidemiology), endemic disease wi ...

and therefore procures health supplies, such as sanitizers/disinfectants,

ventilators A ventilator is a piece of medical technology that provides mechanical ventilation by moving breathable air into and out of the lungs, to deliver breaths to a patient who is physically unable to breathe, or breathing insufficiently. Ventilators ...

and

N95 masks An N95 filtering facepiece respirator, commonly abbreviated N95 respirator, is a particulate-filtering facepiece respirator that meets the U.S. National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) N95 classification of air filtratio ...

. The Federal Budget 2006 allocated $600 million for general pandemic planning and preparedness activities, such as the NESS. As of May 2020, the NESS was the responsibility of the Vice-President, Health Security Infrastructure Branch at the PHAC. The NESS had fallen on hard times, with a staff of 18 people in normal times, and a budget in 2019 of $3 million. The stockpile was reduced in 2019 from 11 warehouses in nine cities to eight warehouses across six cities.

History

The NESS was established in 1952 when the

Cold War The Cold War is a term commonly used to refer to a period of geopolitical tension between the United States and the Soviet Union and their respective allies, the Western Bloc and the Eastern Bloc. The term '' cold war'' is used because the ...

was just begun. Sally Thornton, who was at the time Vice-President, Health Security Infrastructure Branch at the PHAC was quoted in May 2020 to say: "The role has changed to focus more on chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear threats. We began to move away from beds and blankets and increased our holdings of antiviral medications and key treatments." She disclosed that the NESS was not "focused on

personal protective equipment Personal protective equipment (PPE) is protective clothing, helmets, goggles, or other garments or equipment designed to protect the wearer's body from injury or infection. The hazards addressed by protective equipment include physical, elec ...

and had little of the necessary gear to respond to COVID-19."

References

{{reflist Strategic reserves of Canada Government of Canada Emergency management in Canada

Synopsis

History

See also

References