Alberta Children's Hospital in Calgary to open heated trailer next to busy ER
A heated trailer outside of the emergency department at the Alberta Children's Hospital in Calgary has been dropped off and will be open to patients early next month.
The move comes amid a surge in children suffering from respiratory illness, leading to wait times of up to 18 hours at the hospital earlier this month.
Health officials say in-patient units at both the Alberta Children's Hospital and the Stollery Children's Hospital in Edmonton were at or over 100 per cent of their normal capacity.
"We have seen an early and significant burden of viral infections. It's a combination of RSV, COVID-19, Influenza and just regular cold viruses that are circulating strong and early," said Dr. Eddy Lang, the department head of emergency services in the Calgary Zone.
Lang says a shortage of children's medication is also exacerbating the issue and he believes the children's sickness surge will continue for the next three to six weeks.
"On the pediatric side, it's quite dramatic because we're seeing children with RSV infections who are coming in with critically low oxygen levels that are much more common and frequent than we've ever seen before," Lang said.
AHS says the trailer in Calgary will be used when the emergency department sees surges in patient volume and will be monitored in the same way as the emergency department waiting area.
It calls the additional space "a comfort measure to help with crowding and weather conditions," but notes it won't be used as a primary treatment area.
AHS also confirms it has reached out to health unions about the possibility of requiring overtime and redeploying staff to the children's hospital, if the situation gets worse.
Although the hospital has reached 100 per cent capacity, it can operate beyond that demand at peak rates, AHS says, and the emergency provisions have not been triggered at this point.
Lang says the increase of children needing emergency room care isn't limited to just the children's hospital, with other hospitals seeing demand up by about 15 per cent as well.
"Children are not only coming to see emergency physicians, coming in droves at the children's hospitals. But we're also seeing far more children than we usually do at the non-children's hospitals," he said.
Health officials said in mid-November that the Alberta Children's Hospital emergency department had been seeing more than 300 visits a day, compared to between about 180 and 220 before the latest surge.
"No matter where patients are seen at the hospital site, they will always receive appropriate treatment. We’d like to thank the public for their patience and understanding as our staff work to see and treat patients as efficiently as possible," reads a tweet from AHS posted on Saturday.
School boards, meanwhile, have been asking for more direction as a slew of seasonal respiratory illnesses along with some COVID-19 cases have led to high classroom absentee rates and jammed children's hospitals.
Alberta Premier Danielle Smith, however, said last week the province is done treating every respiratory season with extreme measures.
Smith defended new rules banning mask mandates for students and ordering schools to provide in-person learning during the current wave of viral illnesses.
Opposition NDP Leader Rachel Notley responded to news of the trailer with a call for more resources and staff.
"This is a full-on crisis," she said in a tweet.
With files from The Canadian Press.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
BREAKING Average hourly wage in Canada now $34.95: StatCan
Average hourly wages among Canadian employees rose to $34.95 on a year-over-year basis in April, a 4.7 per cent increase, according to a Statistics Canada report released Friday morning.
Magnitude 4.2 earthquake reported off Vancouver Island's west coast
A 4.2-magnitude earthquake was recorded west of Vancouver Island early Friday morning.
This iconic Canadian song is turning 50
Andy Kim's 'Rock Me Gently' is marking a major milestone, as it celebrates its 50th anniversary.
From outer space? Sask. farmers baffled after discovering strange wreckage in field
A family of fifth generation farmers from Ituna, Sask. are trying to find answers after discovering several strange objects lying on their land.
Calgary police to release more details on pro-Palestinian protest
Details on arrests, tickets and charges against a number of pro-Palestinian protesters arrested at the University of Calgary will be released on Friday, police say,
Her SUV was stolen in Montreal. A Good Samaritan on Facebook helped her get it back
Just as she had feared, a restaurant owner from eastern Quebec who visited Montreal had her SUV stolen, but says it was all thanks to the kindness of strangers on the internet — not the police — that she got it back.
Oprah Winfrey: I set an unrealistic standard for dieting
Oprah Winfrey said on Thursday evening that she has long played a role in promoting unhealthy and unrealistic diets.
Ontario family receives massive hospital bill as part of LTC law, refuses to pay
A southwestern Ontario woman has received an $8,400 bill from a hospital in Windsor, Ont., after she refused to put her mother in a nursing home she hated -- and she says she has no intention of paying it.
Toronto police called to Drake's Bridle Path mansion for another alleged intruder on Thursday
Toronto police say a man who allegedly attempted to access Drake’s Bridle Path property was taken to hospital on Thursday after an altercation with security guards.