Health Sciences North was pushed to cancel several surgeries on Feb. 13 and in the days that followed due to the ongoing bed crisis and overcapacity issues in the Emergency Department and Inpatient Units.
According to an inter-office memo circulated on Feb. 13, Health Sciences North senior management has been working closely with the LHIN and community partners to alleviate some of the ongoing pressures. Management has reached out to long-term care homes as well as other hospitals within the region.
St. Joseph's Continuing Care has agreed to open additional temporary beds and other hospitals have agree to repatriate patients more quickly than the usual 48-hour wait period.
Health Sciences North had to cancel a number of surgeries when a computer virus grounded their IT systems to a halt on Jan. 16.
The latest run of cancelled surgeries is linked to capacity issues which are being caused largely by the flu season, according to Jason Turnbull, corporate communications at HSN.
"We are trying to get the message out there that we are dealing with extremes right now," said Turnbull. The hospital is experiencing extremely high patient volumes in all departments at this time, and staff anticipate this will continue with flu season in effect.
"With this significant surge, patients coming to our Emergency Department can expect longer than usual wait times. Please be patient with us," said a public service announcement from HSN.
All emergency issues should be referred to HSN’s Emergency Department. For all non-urgent care issues, HSN is asking the public to look to other options in the community, such as:
- walk-in clinics
- local pharmacies
- Telehealth Ontario can also be accessed 24 hours a day, seven days a week by calling 1-866-797-0000.
