This flu season has hit the hospitals in Chatham-Kent hard.
Chatham-Kent Health Alliance CEO Lori Marshall told reporters on Monday the hospitals in Chatham and Wallaceburg were at or near capacity in mid-January because of several flu patients. She said 14 surge beds had to be made available to handle the volume compared with five beds last flu season.
Marshall isn't sure if the surge was due to more patients or if the flu was more severe this season keeping patients at the hospital longer.
"We did not open this degree of additional beds last year. We were able to get through just with the five beds. What I can't say for sure is if that was due to numbers versus severity," Marshall said.
Marshall said usually flu patients tend to stay longer than surgical patients and tie-up beds.
"You're average surgical patient maybe has a length of stay of about four to five days" she added. "Your medical patients who are ill would tend to have a length of stay that would be seven to 10 days."
Marshall said the flu surge has peaked but reminds people the flu season continues with five surge beds on standby just in case it flares up again.
"We are still watchful, we are still in flu season but we believe that it has peaked and it's not uncommon for there to sometimes be two peaks in a season," said Marshall.
Chatham-Kent Hospital Alliance received $300,000 from the Erie St. Clair Local Health Integration Network in late November for surge beds in case they're needed during the flu season.
Marshall said no surgeries were cancelled during the surge.
The Chatham emergency department sees, on average, 105 patients a day but that number jumped to 140 during the flu surge in mid-January.
