A Joint Message from the Chiefs of Staff at hospitals in the Champlain Region OTTAWA
– June 10, 2020 – Hospitals in the
Champlain Region are taking a safe, coordinated and gradual approach to
increasing scheduled services, which were postponed at the beginning of the
COVID-19 pandemic. While hospitals and
their clinicians are eager to care for as many patients as safely possible,
this measured approach is in line with direction
from the provincial government, which acknowledges this process will take
weeks and months.
Care
teams are reviewing each case individually based on medical need and urgency,
ensuring that risks and benefits are properly evaluated before rescheduling the
surgery, procedure, diagnostic imaging or clinic appointment that cannot be
done virtually. Patients will be contacted as their care can be rescheduled.
This increase in service is separate from the ongoing urgent care provided by
hospitals throughout the pandemic. Hospitals have also been offering, and will
continue to offer, many supports and services virtually throughout the
pandemic, such as mental health care and follow-up appointments.
The work of increasing
surgeries, procedures and services is being carefully considered and balanced
with the potential need to respond quickly in the event of a surge in COVID-19
patients. Hospitals in the region are collaborating to meet the provincial
requirements prior to increasing services. Provincial criteria include: a
lower-than-average number of patients in hospitals across the region, known as
occupancy; appropriate staffing levels and sufficient personal protective
equipment (PPE) supply; among other conditions.
We will carefully monitor our
care volumes and adjust our plans as needed; decreasing some services again
might be necessary if the region’s ability to meet the criteria changes, or
COVID-19 activity increases in hospitals. And while some aspects of the
patient experience will be different, such as fewer patients in waiting rooms,
our teams will continue to deliver safe, high-quality, compassionate care.
The
COVID-19 pandemic and its impacts in Ontario may last many months to years. As
the region enters this new phase of the pandemic, the ability of hospitals to
continue their increase of scheduled services is directly linked to the
community’s ongoing efforts to control the spread of COVID-19. As a community,
we must continue to be vigilant — following instructions from public health, including
proper hand hygiene, physical distancing and masking protocols. This will allow
us to avoid future peaks in transmissions, which would lead to decreased levels
of service once again.
If anyone is in need of
urgent care, we urge them to go to the nearest Emergency Department or contact
their family doctor. Hospitals in the region are taking every possible measure
to ensure patient and staff safety, and are here to care for everyone in need.
Regardless of where care takes place in the region, patient safety is a top
priority.
We would like to thank our
community for their support and for their efforts to reduce the spread of
COVID-19, and we would like to thank all hospital staff, health-care workers,
and essential workers throughout the region for their continued hard work and
dedication. We will continue to navigate this exceptional time by working
together.
Hospitals in the Champlain
Region involved in this regional plan:
- Almonte General Hospital
- Arnprior Regional Health
- Carleton Place & District Memorial Hospital
- CHEO
- Cornwall Community Hospital
- Deep River and District Hospital
- Glengarry
Memorial Hospital
- Hawkesbury and District General
- Kemptville District Hospital
- Hôpital Montfort
- Pembroke Regional Hospital
- Queensway Carleton Hospital
- Renfrew Victoria Hospital
- The Royal
- St. Francis Memorial Hospital
- The Ottawa Hospital
- University of Ottawa Heart Institute
- Winchester District Memorial Hospital
|