Key Takeaways:
- Due to a staffing shortage, a hospital in Grey County will temporarily down its emergency room this weekend.
- The hospital network asserted that it had foreseen potential threats to service reductions if the staffing issues persisted.
- This weekend, Georgian Bay General Hospital announced that its ICU service has been reduced due to a staffing shortfall.
This weekend, a hospital in Grey County will temporarily down its emergency room owing to a staffing crisis.
The emergency room at the Durham location of South Bruce Grey Health Centre (SBGHC) will be closed on Saturday, August 6, from 5 p.m. to 7 a.m. Sunday, August 7, as well as from Sunday, August 7 at 5 p.m. until Monday, August 8 at 7 a.m.
The SBGHC stated on their website that “all efforts to obtain staffing for the Emergency Department have been performed without success.”
“As we continue to face major personnel difficulties, we appreciate the community’s tolerance and understanding. We regret taking this interim measure, but it is necessary nonetheless.
Also read: The 7th COVID-19 wave in Ontario has peaked; says top doctor
The Durham hospital’s emergency rooms, according to SBGHC, are:
Hanover (20km)
Forest Mount (25km)
Markdale (28km)
Walkerton (28km)
Chesley (36km)
Owen Sound (46km)
Palmerston (46km)
The hospital network claimed that if the staffing problems remained, it had already recognized potential threats to service reductions.
When the Chesley Emergency Department reopened last month, “SBGHC had determined that there was a possibility of a future, time-limited reduction in service if the human health resource (HHR) situation deteriorated further,” SBGHC noted.
SBGHC advised anyone needing immediate medical attention to dial 911 to be transported to the closest emergency room or dial 811 to reach Health Connect Ontario for non-urgent medical needs.
Burnout from the COVID-19 epidemic is frequently identified as a contributing cause to the emergency department closures that have been occurring across the province for the past few months.
Due to a staffing shortage this weekend, Georgian Bay General Hospital acknowledged that its ICU service had been scaled back.
A spokesman wrote in an email to CP24 on Saturday, “We opted to keep our ICU beds open at a lesser degree of complexity owing to staffing constraints, but continue Level 2 Basic critical care treatment for our community.”
As a result of an “exceptional scarcity” of nurses, Montfort Hospital in Ottawa’s east end announced yesterday that its emergency room will be temporarily closed overnights this weekend.
Its emergency room will be closed between 7:30 p.m. and 7:30 a.m. on Saturday and Sunday. The brief shutdown will last until Monday at 7:30 a.m.
Unions representing 120,000 hospital employees urged the provincial government to act quickly to address the escalating staffing crisis once more on Friday.
The unions are requesting that the province remove a law limiting wage increases in the public sector to 1%, introduce fresh financial incentives to deter retirement, and invest in on-site amenities like child care centers.
Hospital staffing shortages are becoming a “crisis,” Ontario Health Executive Vice-President Dr. Chris Simpson told CP24 earlier this week.
Although Ontarians continue to have access to care when needed, Premier Doug Ford reaffirmed requests for increased financial assistance from the federal government earlier this week to address the worker shortage.
Source: CTV News
Get Canada and Ontario’s top News, Market news, and other worldwide news only on Ontario Independent
