Alberta's health minister says help is coming for children's hospitals

Alberta Health Minister Jason Copping says help is on the way to deal with strain on the province's two children's hospitals as they deal with a rise in respiratory illnesses.
A surge in patients at Alberta's Children's Hospital prompted Alberta Health Services to redeploy staff to the hospital from a facility that provides respite care for chronically and terminally ill children.
Health officials have said the Calgary hospital and the Stollery Children's Hospital in Edmonton have been operating at or above 100 per cent of their normal capacity during the past month.
"Help is coming,'' Copping said Monday during a news conference on another topic.
"Our system is under strain, there's no doubt about that. This is not just unique to Albertans children's hospital(s). We're seeing impacts across the entire country.''
Children's hospitals across Canada have seen a surge in patients, including those affected by COVID-19, flu and respiratory syncytial virus, or RSV.
Alberta Health Services, which delivers health care in the province, also set up a heated trailer outside the emergency department at Alberta Children's Hospital last month to help with crowding and weather conditions.
Copping said there are some signs that the situation could soon improve.
"We may be hitting the peak of this current flu that's circulating,'' he said, adding data from schools shows student absentee rates are on a downward trend and wastewater data for COVID-19 shows it's stable.
He said the province is still working to add resources to the health system.
Copping said there's no immediate plan to replicate what's happening in Ontario by postponing pediatric surgeries or bringing in outside agencies to help.
"We are not hearing any of that right now,'' he said.
Opposition NDP Leader Rachel Notley called the surge in pediatric cases at Alberta children's hospitals alarming.
"These children need our help,'' she said during question period.
Notley then asked Premier Danielle Smith what she would do to prevent pediatric surgeries from being cancelled.
"We already know that the wait in emergency rooms is way too long,'' Smith said in response. "That's part of the reason I appointed Dr. John Cowell as chief administrator (of Alberta Health Services) so we can be making these decisions in a very rapid way.''
Smith said she expects to have something more to say on the issue as early as Tuesday.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 5, 2022.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories

Amid concern over Canadians going hungry, Conservatives criticized for voting against school food bill
As Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre continues to voice concern over the increase in food bank usage, his party is being criticized by some for voting against a private member's bill that would advance a framework for a national school food program.
Russian girl shoots several classmates, leaving 1 dead, before killing herself
A Russian girl shot several classmates at school Thursday, killing one person and wounding five others before killing herself, state news agencies and authorities said.
Canada being hit by 3 separate storm systems: Here's where
Winter weather is underway in parts of Canada with three storm systems bringing messy conditions from B.C. to Newfoundland and Labrador.
'The Brick' is at the centre of our galaxy. An unexpected new finding may help unlock its mysteries
A box-shaped cloud of opaque dust that lies at the centre of our galaxy has long perplexed scientists, and observations that reveal a new detail about its composition are deepening the mystery — possibly upending what’s known about how stars form.
A massive garden light display is one of the newest holiday traditions in St. John's
The Merry and Bright light festival has illuminated the botanical gardens in St. John's, N.L. for seven years, and it just keeps getting bigger.
Cindy Woodhouse is the new AFN national chief after David Pratt concedes
Cindy Woodhouse is the new national chief of the Assembly of First Nations.The Manitoba regional chief was tapped to lead the political advocacy organization after her closest challenger, David Pratt, conceded.
Joly condemns Hamas rapes of Israeli women after weeks of pressure
Foreign Affairs Minister Melanie Joly is condemning sexual violence committed by Hamas during its attack on Israel, after weeks of pressure to speak out.
HIV diagnoses hit 10-year high in Montreal, cases more than double between 2021-22
Public health officials say they recorded in 2022 the highest number of new HIV diagnoses in 10 years in the city of Montreal and its on-island suburbs. Data shared last week shows the number of new reported HIV cases more than doubled between 2021 and 2022, to 310 from 141.
Amanda Todd's mom urges more jail time for tormentor, as Dutch court mulls sentence
The mother of B.C. teenager Amanda Todd, who was bullied into suicide by a Dutch national, says she'll be “so angry” if a court in Amsterdam doesn't give him significant extra jail time on the basis of his Canadian conviction last year.