Simcoe County hospitals deal with dire staffing shortages
Health officials say painful hospital wait times spanning an average of three to five hours will only worsen with critical staffing shortages.
"This is certainly a crisis we're experiencing across the region," said Matthew Lawson, Georgian Bay General Hospital President and CEO. "Short-term, we're in for a rough summer."
Lawson said the Midland hospital has had to make adjustments, like closing beds due to significant staffing voids, and with patient demand not slowing, existing staff are feeling the pressure.
"We're absolutely at fatigue and burnout," he said. "We're upwards of 300 people a day, not to mention the over 100 patients that are admitted at any given time."
Lawson said the hospital resorted to bringing in temporary agency nursing staff. "That also is quite expensive, so it's not ideal. We would love to have our building fully staffed."
The situation is similar in Alliston, where Stevenson Memorial Hospital staff is dealing with a 30 to 40 per cent increase in patients this month, despite being desperately short on nurses.
The hospital's chief nursing executive encourages residents seeking medical attention to try the Cough, Cold and Flu Clinic or "go to your physician when you're able... to your nurse practitioners."
Many overburdened hospitals rely on the region's largest facility, Royal Victoria Regional Health Centre (RVH), to help carry the load.
"We're very aware that our workforce is very tired, burnt out, stressed. It's been difficult," noted Darrell Sewell, RVH Chief Human Resource Officer.
The Barrie hospital has recruited 157 new nurses in the past six months after 113 left.
Sewell praised those working at RVH, who he said have put in long hours and been shifted to various units to help cover where necessary.
"The way that they have stepped up, shown up, the flexibility, the resiliency to move into spaces and provide care in units," he noted. "They rise to the occasion."
- RELATED
- Barrie hospital records longest ER wait time across the region
- RVH president cites many factors for long hospital wait times
Orillia Soldiers' Memorial Hospital's President and CEO Carmine Stumpo said they need nurses and personal support workers as the city grows and visitors make the Sunshine City their summer destination.
"This is all making it busier at a time when our staffing isn't what we hope it would be," he said.
"We're looking forward to solutions, working with our community, with the government around getting more nurses, more physicians and more staff in general within the hospital sector," Lawson stated in Midland.
Despite the dire staffing shortages across the region, health care officials say those seeking urgent medical care shouldn't hesitate to visit a local hospital.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
Northern Ont. lawyer who abandoned clients in child protection cases disbarred
A North Bay, Ont., lawyer who abandoned 15 clients – many of them child protection cases – has lost his licence to practise law.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Maple Leafs fall to Bruins in Game 3, trail series 2-1
Brad Marchand scored twice, including the winner in the third period, and added an assist as the Boston Bruins downed the Toronto Maple Leafs 4-2 to take a 2-1 lead in their first-round playoff series Wednesday
Cuban government apologizes to Montreal-area family after delivering wrong body
Cuba's foreign affairs minister has apologized to a Montreal-area family after they were sent the wrong body following the death of a loved one.
'It was instant karma': Viral video captures failed theft attempt in Nanaimo, B.C.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
What is changing about Canada's capital gains tax and how does it impact me?
The federal government's proposed change to capital gains taxation is expected to increase taxes on investments and mainly affect wealthy Canadians and businesses. Here's what you need to know about the move.
New Indigenous loan guarantee program a 'really big deal,' Freeland says at Toronto conference
Canada's Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland was among the 1,700 delegates attending the two-day First Nations Major Projects Coalition (FNMPC) conference that concluded Tuesday in Toronto.
'Life was not fair to him': Daughter of N.B. man exonerated of murder remembers him as a kind soul
The daughter of a New Brunswick man recently exonerated from murder, is remembering her father as somebody who, despite a wrongful conviction, never became bitter or angry.