1) On Sunday, the Canadian Red Cross opened a field hospital for the first time on Quebec soil — in of all places, a hockey arena in LaSalle — for overflow #COVID patients from nursing homes. The latest data out of Montreal shows a mixed record today, the subject of my thread.

2) What’s a bit encouraging is Montreal hasn’t been reporting any daily #COVID cases in the high 500s or 600s. That would be a clear sign the #pandemic hasn’t peaked in the city. The latest daily tally is 460 cases amid modest increases in testing in the past three days.

3) A review of the different areas of Montreal — the epicenter of Canada’s #pandemic — shows Montreal North is poised to take over Côte-des-Neiges—Notre-Dame-de-Grâce as the city’s #COVID hot spot. The blue arrows in the chart below show continued growth in other neighborhoods.

4) But a welcome trend is developing. The thumbs-up signs in the chart below show #COVID stalling for the first time in a few neighborhoods, notably Côte-Saint-Luc, once the city’s #COVID hot spot. Again, the record is mixed: with some areas improving and others not.

5) Authorities have been focusing a lot on #COVID hospitalizations. Although important, other indicators must be considered, too. ER overcrowding remains a problem, particularly at Santa Cabrini Hospital, where a #COVID outbreak has occurred. This must be addressed.

6) Regrettably, authorities aren't providing data on #COVID hospital outbreaks. It’s been up to journalists to uncover them. My records show there have been outbreaks in eight different hospitals, the worst occurring at Sacré-Coeur, which is outsourcing its orthopedics.

7) Although Quebec is now releasing daily updates on nursing home outbreaks after pressure from journalists, it didn’t on Sunday. But I did manage to get info on the outbreak at the Vigi Mont-Royal CHSLD, where the number of residents infected with #COVID remained at 172.

8) Meanwhile, the #COVID death toll in Montreal climbed on Sunday to 938 — 10 deaths shy of the total for all of Ontario. The city’s increase was lower than in previous days, but we must be very careful about drawing conclusions based on a day’s difference.

9) An analysis of #COVID deaths in Montreal reveals most deaths are in nursing homes, as expected. What puzzles me is the 57 deaths in hospitals, up by eight since Saturday. It’s hard to say yet whether this is another indicator of the #pandemic’s impact on hospitals.

10) On Sunday, Premier Doug Ford announced public schools in Ontario will stay closed until at least May 31. We should find out Monday what Quebec Premier @francoislegault has in mind for our schools. Let’s hope he's being advised accurately about Montreal. End of thread.