The province has crossed a dangerous threshold when it comes to COVID-19 patients in hospital.
Yesterday, there were over 150 patients in intensive care in hospitals across Ontario, which provincial officials have cited as the mark when it will become harder to support non-COVID-19 needs.
With just two patients in the ICU in Chatham-Kent, Health Alliance CEO Lori Marshall says they are ready to help, if necessary.
“Our hospital is really considered not only a resource and asset to Chatham-Kent, it is a provincial resource and asset,” “It is possible that at some stage, we might anticipate that patients could be transferred to Chatham-Kent from other jurisdictions in the event that care was required.”
Marshall says even though the Health Alliance is currently at about 70% occupancy, it wouldn’t take much for the system to become overwhelmed.
“This is really why we need everyone in the province to be adhering to the things we know make a difference, the social distancing, the hand hygiene, the wearing of masks. This is what is going to help to keep us all healthy and also to keep the capacity there and available to support people in the event people do need hospitalization for anything.”
