You might not get the level of care you need or want if you go to your local Alberta hospital, as workers say they’re understaffed.
“Human resources, people. So, across the entire province, we’re really struggling with staffing levels. We’re struggling with staffing levels for skilled nurses, raspatory therapists, paramedics, and doctors,” said Dr. Paul Parks, President of the Alberta Medical Association’s emergency medicine section.
He explains those issues have been intensified over the past two years with COVID-19.
“It’s an issue everywhere, but it’s going to be amplified in places like regional centres and rural centres. The easiest example would be, in a small place where there are one or two physicians, if you lose one or both, you have no coverage,” Parks said. “The bigger centres may have troubles, [in] Edmonton, Calgary, some of the [emergency] departments might be struggling to be able staff their entire wards in the hospitals.”
Red Deer Regional Hospital Centre have been diverting general surgery patients since April 29. While Swan Hills Healthcare Centre shut its emergency room overnight Monday into Tuesday, and Consort Hospital and Care Centre plans to close its emergency room on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Fridays through May.
Parks says many of these hospitals are desperately understaffed and cannot provide the level of care they are expected to.
“In the emerg’ department in Red Deer for example, people are still going there needing surgeries, needing emergency cardiac care, and the emerg’ physicians are doing their best but it’s extremely suboptimal and difficult because of a lack of those human resources.”
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Meanwhile, Alberta Health Services says it is experiencing significant healthcare system pressures.
“Particularly our emergency departments and EMS, due to high volumes of seriously ill patients and the impact of COVID-19, which includes an increased number of patients requiring hospitalization, limited admissions to some hospital units due to infection control requirements, and increased staff absences,” AHS said in a statement to CityNews.
“Emergency departments are also seeing an increase in patients with influenza-like symptoms, and in patients seeking care after deferring it at various times over the past two years.”
The health department says these issues have resulted in long wait times in some cases and spikes that have caused overcrowding and delays.
“Albertans should be assured they will receive the care they need. If people need emergency care, we strongly urge them to call 911 or visit an emergency department,” AHS reassured.
“We encourage people to consider other levels of care if they are not experiencing a medical emergency.”
The service says this issue is happening across Canada and is not limited to just Alberta.
