'We need to bend that curve': Alberta could transfer ICU patients to Ontario as hospitalizations near 900
Alberta is considering transferring ICU patients to other provinces as the fourth wave puts its health-care system under "extreme pressure."
Ontario has accepted to take on Alberta patients if needed, and Alberta Health Services is also in conversations with British Columbia and Manitoba, president and CEO Dr. Verna Yiu told reporters on Thursday. However, in a statement to CTV News, B.C. told Alberta it will not be able to help them "given the current demands" on its own health-care system right now.
Dr. Yiu stressed AHS hopes it does not get to that point, but added: "We do not have the ability to simply open more and more ICU spaces and hospital beds and we do not have an endless number of staff who can provide critical care."
Alberta currently has 310 ICU beds, a total that includes 137 surge beds, Dr. Yiu said. Eighty-six per cent of beds are occupied — largely by COVID-19 patients.
In addition to the possibility of out-of-province help, AHS says its field hospitals in Edmonton and Calgary are ready.
And the triage protocol is, too.
"We've started the educational process, so this week was sharing with our staff what it is and setting the infrastructure in place so if we had to use — again this would be an absolute, absolute last resort — that staff are ready, trained and prepared," Dr. Yiu said.
She begged unvaccinated Albertans to get immunized to protect themselves and others, and alleviate the stress on hospitals.
"If the numbers keep increasing, right now we're seeing on average about 18 to 20 new COVID ICU admissions every single day throughout the province, and we need to bend that curve. We need to bend that trend, and the best thing we can do is to [get vaccinated]. So I just can't say enough how important it is for Albertans to go out and get vaccinated."
KEY METRICS KEEP SPIKING
Alberta reported 1,718 new COVID-19 cases and 10 deaths on Thursday.
The province now has 18,706 active cases, 896 hospitalizations and 222 ICU admissions.
Alberta's pandemic death toll exceeded 2,500 on Thursday.
Close to 78 per cent of hospital cases are unvaccinated or partially vaccinated, Chief Medical Officer of Health Dr. Deena Hinshaw said.
Of eligible Albertans, 79.6 per cent have one vaccine dose and 71.5 per cent have both.
Hinshaw, who gave regular media briefings for most of the pandemic before Alberta loosened its restrictions on July 1, said she would begin to give updates twice a week again.
"Given the crisis that our province is facing and the state of public health emergency that was issued yesterday, I will keep Albertans informed and will be here regularly to answer questions to the best of my ability."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
Northern Ont. lawyer who abandoned clients in child protection cases disbarred
A North Bay, Ont., lawyer who abandoned 15 clients – many of them child protection cases – has lost his licence to practise law.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Maple Leafs fall to Bruins in Game 3, trail series 2-1
Brad Marchand scored twice, including the winner in the third period, and added an assist as the Boston Bruins downed the Toronto Maple Leafs 4-2 to take a 2-1 lead in their first-round playoff series Wednesday
Cuban government apologizes to Montreal-area family after delivering wrong body
Cuba's foreign affairs minister has apologized to a Montreal-area family after they were sent the wrong body following the death of a loved one.
'It was instant karma': Viral video captures failed theft attempt in Nanaimo, B.C.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
What is changing about Canada's capital gains tax and how does it impact me?
The federal government's proposed change to capital gains taxation is expected to increase taxes on investments and mainly affect wealthy Canadians and businesses. Here's what you need to know about the move.
New Indigenous loan guarantee program a 'really big deal,' Freeland says at Toronto conference
Canada's Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland was among the 1,700 delegates attending the two-day First Nations Major Projects Coalition (FNMPC) conference that concluded Tuesday in Toronto.
'Life was not fair to him': Daughter of N.B. man exonerated of murder remembers him as a kind soul
The daughter of a New Brunswick man recently exonerated from murder, is remembering her father as somebody who, despite a wrongful conviction, never became bitter or angry.