Erie Shores HealthCare is preparing for an increase in influenza cases over the coming weeks, as the hospital continues to deal with significant occupancy pressures.
During Tuesday’s Board of Directors meeting, President and CEO Kristin Kennedy says occupancy has remained above 110 per cent for much of the past year, and the hospital expects things to get busier as respiratory illnesses spread.
Public Health Ontario reports 360 positive influenza cases across the province between October 18 and October 24. That’s up from 305 the previous week and 225 the week before that.
Meanwhile, Erie Shores will not be bringing back its dedicated Paediatric Respiratory Clinic this flu season. The clinic operated once a week last year, but Kennedy says there wasn’t enough demand at the hospital to continue it.
Kennedy says COVID and RSV cases have remained low, but the biggest concern is the flu.
“We do anticipate occupancy pressures to increase probably over the next two weeks. We’ve seen low activity around COVID, RSV and influenza at this point, I would say less than five per cent at Erie Shores HealthCare. But we do anticipate influenza rising over the next two to three weeks.”
Kennedy says Erie Shores, Windsor Regional Hospital and Hotel-Dieu Grace Healthcare are in constant communication to assist one another.
“There are strategies in place both at Windsor Regional and Erie Shores to work together with our long-term care homes to look at transitional beds so that we can minimize blockages of beds and admit no beds in our ER, and to bed space as needed and open additional beds as we need to with existing staffing.”
She says the Paediatric Respiratory Clinic won’t be open this year.
“The uptake was too low here at the hospital because our pediatrician was able to open a clinic in the community itself as opposed to physically on the hospital site. And so we are going to monitor that strategy this year and ensure that that’s the proper place for our patients.”
Kennedy says the expected peak in influenza cases could come during the first two weeks of the new year.
Anyone six months of age and older who lives, works or goes to school in Ontario can receive a free flu and COVID-19 vaccine.
Residents can contact their primary care provider or a participating pharmacy, and are encouraged to call ahead to confirm availability.