Hospitals struggling as COVID-19 cases, hospitalizations rise in Alberta: doctor
COVID-19 statistics saw an uptick in late April in Alberta — a development one doctor says is straining hospitals even more.
Cases increased by 21 per cent; the positivity rate grew by four per cent; and hospitalizations went up 28 per cent from the week before at the end of last month.
While cases and hospitalizations are nowhere near as high as the peak of the pandemic, an ER doctor told CTV News Edmonton hospitals are still feeling the strain.
"We are overcrowded, under-resourced, struggling to manage as many patients as we possibly can with limited resources, limited people, limited personnel," Dr. Warren Thirsk said, a doctor at the Royal Alexandra Hospital.
"I think that the system is so over capacity and under-resourced that any minor strain has a magnified effect on us and everyone else. I'm not surprised that we're having a spike in COVID."
Dr. Thirsk says patients are suffering, waiting as long as 14 hours in "deplorable conditions."
"We have traded resources for suffering. We've traded investment in the system for wait times, and those wait times come with suffering," Dr. Thirsk said.
He thinks immunization continues to be the best solution to keep COVID-19 at bay as much as possible.
Adriana LaGrange, Alberta's health minister, acknowledged the uptick in cases on Tuesday afternoon, but "it's not a huge amount."
LaGrange said her government and health officials are monitoring the situation in hospitals and that the province launched a spring immunization campaign for at-risk Albertans.
On Tuesday, the Opposition NDP asked the government to report COVID-19 data more often and to make decisions with the advice of the province's chief medical officer of health.
"We're worried about transmission in the hospitals, because that's where the cases are. And because there's overcrowding in our hospitals," NDP MLA Luanne Metz said.
"We need to be paying attention to what the risks are and how this is going to spread."
Seven hospitals had a COVID-19 outbreak as of April 30.
With files from CTV News Edmonton's Chelan Skulski
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
BREAKING 3 injured after man with knife enters Montreal-area Islamic cultural centre
Three men were injured after a man armed with a knife entered a Montreal-area Islamic cultural centre Friday afternoon.
Teen arrested in New Brunswick after emergency alert; 5 people in custody
A 15-year-old boy who was the subject of an emergency alert in New Brunswick has been arrested.
Suspect arrested in theft of Porsche that was captured on video
Police have arrested an 18-year-old woman who allegedly stole a Porche and then ran over its owner in an incident that was captured on video.
Woman nearly shut out of mother's estate sues brother in B.C. Supreme Court – and wins
Since she was a young girl growing up in Vancouver, Ginny Lam says her mom Yat Hei Law made it very clear she favoured her son William, because he was her male heir.
Parents of Ontario teen sue alleged poison salesman Kenneth Law
The parents of a teenager who died after allegedly consuming the poisonous products of a Mississauga man are now suing him, as well as several doctors involved in her care.
11-year-old boy dies after subway surfing in NYC
An 11-year-old boy died Monday after subway surfing in New York City. He's the fourth person to die from subway surfing in the city this year.
'We're still pushing hard': Search for missing Manitoba boy continues, RCMP find tracks
The search for a missing six-year-old boy in Shamattawa is continuing Friday as RCMP hope recent tips can help lead to a happy conclusion.
Recall issued for 38,000 GM vehicles in Canada over software safety glitch
Transport Canada has issued a recall for 38,000 General Motors (GM) vehicles for safety risks related to a software glitch, the agency reported in a notice on Wednesday.
Top Hezbollah commander among 12 killed in Israeli strike on Beirut
Israel killed a top Hezbollah commander and other senior figures in the Lebanese movement in an airstrike on Beirut on Friday, vowing to press on with a new military campaign until it is able to secure the area around the Lebanese border.