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 Guilty: Trump becomes first former U.S. president convicted of felony crimes
Donald Trump became the first former American president to be convicted of felony crimes Thursday as a New York jury found him guilty of all 34 charges in a scheme to illegally influence the 2016 election through a hush money payment to a porn actor who said the two had sex.
Can Trump come to Canada now that he's a convicted felon?
A Canadian immigration lawyer says now that Donald Trump is a convicted felon, he is technically barred from crossing the border into Canada.
Montreal tech billionaire charged with several sex offences
Robert Miller was charged Thursday with several sexual assault charges after Montreal police reopened an investigation into the tech billionaire.
A pair enjoyed pricey meals and bolted when it was time to pay. Their dine and dash ended in jail
A Welsh couple who dined out on pricey meals and bolted when the bill came is now paying the price, behind bars.
Aurora borealis returning to night skies across Canada this Friday: NOAA
If you missed the brilliant displays of the aurora borealis over North America on May 10, you may have another chance to see them on Friday night.
Shell investigating a 'potential cybersecurity incident'
Oil and gas giant Shell says it is investigating a possible cybersecurity 'incident.'
Doug Ford suggests immigrants behind Jewish school shooting
Ontario Premier Doug Ford suggested immigrants are to blame for the shooting of an empty Jewish school in Toronto over the weekend, despite police saying they have little information on the suspects.
NDP wants Liberals to scrap proposed election date change that could secure pensions for many MPs
The federal New Democrats want to amend the Liberal government's electoral reform legislation to scrap the proposal to push back the vote by a week and consequently secure pensions for dozens of MPs, CTV News has learned.
'I didn't think it was real': Oilers fans score free Game 4 tickets from stranger
There's always something to be happy about when the Edmonton Oilers are making good strides in the playoffs, but this is especially true for two lucky fans who were able to enjoy the sights and sounds of Game 4 — for free.