Worried about the climbing number of COVID-19 patients who require treatment at their facility, Windsor Regional Hospital plans to postpone non-urgent, pre-scheduled surgeries starting Monday, January 4.
As of Tuesday, the Windsor Essex County Health Unit said there were 79 patients with confirmed cases of the virus at the hospital, including 17 in the intensive care unit. Another 131 patients are suspected to have COVID-19 too.
The hospital said cases were rising at “an alarming rate” and there is a potentially critical shortage of acute care beds.
Affected patients will be notified by their surgeon’s office.
The postponement is indefinite and does not include urgent, emergency, and cancer surgeries.
The hospital also cited a shortage of staff. Healthcare workers are stretched between the hospital’s two COVID-19 assessment centres and the new vaccination centre at the Sportsplex at St. Clair College.
Meanwhile, the vaccination centre will be open seven days a week, and hours at the Met Campus assessment centre will soon be adjusted to match operating hours at the Ouellette Campus one.
