CANADA (Commonwealth Union)_Even before the typical flu season starts, hospital emergency rooms are congested in parts of Canada, raising fears about the upcoming winter months. For example, ERs in Montreal have been operating at close to 150 percent of capacity for much of the past week, and some have even reached 200 percent.
The COVID-19 pandemic and the ensuing staffing shortages have put continuous strain on the system, according to Dr. Judy Morris, president of the Quebec Association of Emergency Physicians. Across the whole health care network, “the absence of employees — of all kinds, but especially nursing personnel — is affecting us,” she said.
Other Canadian provinces including Alberta, British Columbia and Ontario are all having problems with the scenario. “I have been practising emergency medicine for almost 19 years, and I have never seen the waits that our patients have to undergo at all,” Dr. Carolyn Snider, director of emergency medicine at St. Michael’s Hospital in downtown Toronto, said. “I think what’s most worrying about it is that for so many of us, it doesn’t feel like there’s an end in sight.”
A new COVID-19 wave is starting in Europe, according to top medical advisor for Health Canada, Dr. Supriya Sharma. In addition to keeping an eye on COVID cases, there are worries that this year’s flu season could be worse than the previous two. It’s important to exercise extreme caution and implement as many tiers of our multi-layered public health strategy as we can.
The severity of the issue in that province is demonstrated by an Ontario Health report that was leaked by the opposition Liberals last week. Over 33 hours were spent waiting for an inpatient bed by patients in emergency rooms in August, a 54% increase from the same month a year prior. Patients had to wait up to 83 minutes after their ambulances were offloaded before being admitted to the hospital.
Authorities are asking locals to obtain their influenza and COVID-19 booster injections as they issue warnings about an uncertain fall and winter.
