Health authorities take drastic action to offset staffing shortages
With workers sick, heath authorities across the province may temporarily divert ambulances, deploy staff to where needed and cancel scheduled surgeries, in order to keep the system going, said Health Minister Adrian Dix at a COVID-19 briefing Tuesday.
"All of these measures are to stabilize the health-care system as we battle COVID-19 and the Omicron variant of concern," Dix said.
Roughly 2,000 fewer health-care workers called in sick last week compared to the week before. Dix said while that was a good sign, he noted the rate was double that of last year and explained that was mostly due to the new variant.
"Again, to put that in context, certainly that puts significant pressure on our health-care system and we are responding to that through a number of measures to address and ensure that core services are in place and people get the care they need when they need it," he added.
The president of the B.C. Nurses Union says with so many out sick, those still on the job are left scrambling.
"Some are having 10 patients, 12 patients on night shift, that's a significant increase to your workload," Aman Grewal told CTV News.
“They’re working overtime because they feel that sense of guilt that their coworkers are working short staffed.”
Each health authority will create a plan to address shortages and share that information with the public. Dix said some of the measures could include the following:
- Postponing non-urgent scheduled surgeries;
- Rescheduling home support visits;
- Temporarily closing inpatient services;
- Reducing overnight hours at health centres;
- Redeploying staff including administrative staff where appropriate;
- Using virtual health technology.
Dix told reporters the measures are temporary, but required during the Omicron wave of the pandemic.
"I understand some of these measures may cause concerns and challenges for patients. We are determined to get services up, back and running in full as soon as possible."
Dix also said the issue wasn't beds, adding that there are approximately 2,200 vacant base and surge beds across the health-care system.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
MPP Sarah Jama asked to leave Ontario legislature for wearing keffiyeh
MPP Sarah Jama was asked to leave the Legislative Assembly of Ontario by House Speaker Ted Arnott on Thursday for wearing a keffiyeh, a garment which has been banned at Queen’s Park.
Mountain guide dies after falling into a crevasse in Banff National Park
A man who fell into a crevasse while leading a backcountry ski group deep in the Canadian Rockies has died.
2 teens charged in Halifax homicide: police
Two teenagers have been charged with second-degree murder in connection to an alleged homicide near the Halifax Shopping Centre earlier this week.
'Deep ignorance': Calls for Manitoba trustee to resign sparked after comments about Indigenous people and reconciliation
A rural Manitoba school trustee is facing calls to resign over comments he made about Indigenous people and residential schools earlier this week.
ByteDance prefers TikTok shutdown in U.S. if legal options fail, Reuters sources say
TikTok owner ByteDance would prefer to shut down its loss-making app rather than sell it if the Chinese company exhausts all legal options to fight legislation to ban the platform from app stores in the U.S., four sources said.
12-year-old hippo in Japan raised as a male discovered to be a female
When Gen-chan arrived at a zoo in Japan in 2017, no one questioned whether the then-five-year-old hippopotamus was a boy. Seven years later, zoo staff made a surprising discovery: Gen-chan, now 12, was female.
Here's why Harvey Weinstein's New York rape conviction was tossed and what happens next
Here's what you need to know about why movie mogul Harvey Weinstein's rape conviction was thrown out and what happens next.
Improve balance and build core strength with this exercise
When it comes to cardiovascular fitness, you may tend to focus on activities that move you forward, such as walking, running and cycling.
Legendary hockey broadcaster Bob Cole dies at 90: CBC
Bob Cole, a welcome voice for Canadian hockey fans for a half-century, has died at the age of 90. Cole died Wednesday night in St. John's, N.L., surrounded by his family, his daughter, Megan Cole, told the CBC.