'My hair's been falling out': Nurses hit with protest stress after 2 years of COVID

COVID-19 might have a lessened impact on many residents compared to last month, or earlier in the pandemic, but nurses are still in the thick of the pandemic and some say the ongoing protest in Ottawa has left them tired and defeated.

Hospital staff have cared for patients throughout the pandemic, but the situation reached a crisis point in this past wave with severe staff shortages, outbreaks, and new COVID-19 hospitalization records. Ottawa, for example, set a new pandemic high with 142 patients hospitalized with active COVID on Jan. 16.

Less than two weeks after that record was set, the convoy arrived and the ongoing protest began focused on ending COVID-19 rules across Canada. 

The protest has now reached its 14th day forcing the closure of downtown streets, businesses and services, while leaving locals scared and frustrated — including nurses.

"I'm stressed going home. I'm stressed coming back from work. It's been awful. My hair's been falling out," said Andrea Waddell, a nurse at The Ottawa Hospital who uses public transit to commute.

Waddell has relied on ride-shares since the protest began because of the protest's impact on public transit, and has often arrived to work early in fear of potential traffic delays.

"That extra level of tiredness, it slows you down naturally and it takes you longer to do simple tasks," Waddell said.  

Nurse Vanessa Rondeau says she, like some other Ottawa residents, has been harassed for wearing a mask outside on the street. After spending two years on the front lines of the pandemic, she says this treatment has begun to affect her work.

"The protests have definitely made it worse," Rondeau said. "I do find myself a little bit more put out at work, a little bit shorter."

Rondeau, who works at The Ottawa Hospital's Civic campus, said the number of people protesting COVID-19 health measures, including vaccine mandates, has left her feeling defeated.

"On my way home from work, it's hard to see people [protest]. It almost feels like they're opposed to what I'm doing," she said.

The protest has also affected staff at both the Élisabeth Bruyère Hospital and its sister campus, Saint-Vincent Hospital near Bronson Avenue, according to the hospital's administration. Both sit in the area of the city that officials want people to avoid.

"It's making a difficult situation even more difficult," said Rachel Muir, an Ottawa nurse who also heads the local bargaining unit of the Ontario Nurses Association (ONA).

Muir said there are several nurses who live downtown and had lost multiple nights of sleep because of the honking, which has only recently been silenced thanks to a court injunction.