THUNDER BAY - Hospitals in Southern Ontario are reaching capacity due to record numbers of COVID-19 hospitalizations and intensive care unit admissions and are being forced to send patients elsewhere.
The Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Centre has not been asked to accept any COVID-19 patients from Southern Ontario at this time, but president and CEO, Dr. Rhonda Crocker Ellacott, said it is prepared should the need arise.
“We haven’t seen that but we certainly work daily with the critical care command table provincially who identify where patient care will be delivered depending on the situation various ICUs find themselves in,” she said.
(Staff photo)
As the COVID-19 active cases go down in the district, the Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Centre continues to treat infected patients.
The hospital is reporting it has 15 patients admitted who have tested positive for COVID-19.
Of those, 7 are in the Intensive Care Unit.
It puts the hospital’s overall occupancy at around 80 percent.
Meantime, the hospital is reporting that it is prepared with expansion plans for the intensive care unit if southern Ontario patients are required to be transferred here because of overcrowding.
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THUNDER BAY – The federal health minister says countries around the world are scrambling to acquire COVID-19 vaccinations.
Canada is not alone in this regard.
But while criticism has rained down on the country over the past week surrounding Canada’s vaccine procurement, Liberal Patty Hadju on Thursday said the nation’s vaccination numbers are rapidly rising among G20 countries.
According to the New York Times, Canada is 18th in the world, with 22 per cent of its population having at least one dose, which is sixth in the world when counting countries with more than five million people.
Canada is also in the top 20 in the world in total doses administered, having given out 9.1 million. The United States, which produces its own vaccines, tops all nations at 194 million and counting.
Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Centre. (tbnewswatch.com/FILE)
THUNDER BAY - People living in Northwestern Ontario can have their say on the strategic direction of health care in the region.
The Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Centre is seeking public input on its upcoming strategic plan 2026, which the hospital says will prioritize community needs and advance partnerships and health system integration.
Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Centre president and CEO, and Thunder Bay Regional Health Research Institute CEO, Dr. Rhonda Crocker Ellacott said the COVID-19 pandemic has created many operational challenges for the hospital.
“It is crucial that we continued planning for how we serve our communities post-pandemic,” she said. “To that end, we want to hear from our front-line staff, the public and our stakeholders to help inspire thinking and create priorities over the next five years.”