Sudbury’s three hospitals have cancelled some elective surgeries following the outbreak of Norovirus, CEO Vickie Kaminski told the board of directors on Tuesday night.
The hospitals cancelled 19 surgeries on Monday and Tuesday mainly because of a shortage of beds and staff.
Elective surgeries are surgeries that can be deferred, but that require the patient to stay overnight at the hospital, said spokesman Sean Barrette.
He added serious surgeries will still be done.
Patients whose surgeries were cancelled were informed by the hospital or their physician, Barrette said. The surgeries will be rescheduled “as soon as possible,” he said, adding it was impossible to say how long people will have to wait.
The three hospitals will continue to be off limits to most visitors until at least Wednesday afternoon, said David McNeil, vice-president of clinical programs and chief nursing officer.
Norovirus, commonly called stomach flu, first broke out on the fourth floor of St. Joseph’s Health Centre on April 3, Barrette said. Patients on the fourth floor of Laurentian Site also fell ill. Patients at Memorial Site were spared.
As of Tuesday afternoon, 38 patients and 13 hospital employees – mainly nurses – had Norovirus, McNeil said. “We’re always concerned when there’s an outbreak at our facility.”
The hospital is asking for the public’s co-operation as it abides by its outbreak management plan to protect patients, staff and the public.
The hospital outbreak committee is taking measures to keep the virus at bay. These include having the nurses wear gowns and gloves, bringing in extra housekeeping staff, using disposable meal trays, not admitting patients to the affected units and not transferring patients from those units.
Visitors can still go the pediatric and neonatal intensive care units, Barrette said. As well, the hospitals will allow visits to all units on compassionate grounds.
“It’s something we expect to have under control in the next few days,” Kaminski said. “We saw a slight decline in the number of patients with symptoms today.”
Barrette reminded visitors to wash their hands at the hand washing stations provided at the entrances to the hospitals.
