Starting Monday, upwards of 45 elective surgeries per week at the QEII Hospital in Grande Prairie will be postponed as Alberta Health Services looks to increase bed capacity and create a dedicated COVID-19 unit.
AHS says the measure will allow for the hospital to free up space for patients who need higher levels of care and to redeploy staff and resources where they are needed most. The provincial health authority saya anyone who had a surgery or procedure postponed due to the changes will be contacted directly.
Outside of the AHS North zone, AHS says similar reductions will also take place in the Edmonton zone. It’s reported 96 per cent of all surgeries previously delayed by the first three waves of the COVID-19 pandemic have been completed across the province.
There is no timeline as to when reductions in elective surgery availability will be lifted.
Earlier Friday, the provincial NDP reported having obtained an email from AHS that showed an urgent need for doctors in several rural communities, including some in the Peace Country. It’s alleged emergency rooms in Spirit River, Beaverlodge, Cold Lake, St. Paul, Elk Point, and Wabasca are “in urgent need of coverage throughout September, some for weeks at a time.”
