Nova Scotia Health is warning people the emergency room at the Queen Elizabeth II Health Sciences Centre in Halifax is experiencing “extremely high” patient volumes.
In fact, anyone who accompanies someone to the QEII emergency room is asked not to wait with them, the health authority said in a tweet late Monday afternoon.
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“While we are continuing to see new patients, our waiting room is full so we are asking anyone accompanying an emergency patient not to wait with them unless that is essential to their care,” the tweet said.
Those who do stay are asked to leave seats for patients who need them.
“As always, patients will be seen according to their triage level,” NSH wrote. “Unfortunately, patients can expect long waits for care. We apologize for these conditions.”
The QEII emergency department in Halifax is seeing extremely high patient volumes and limited capacity while admitted patients await movement to other areas inside the hospital. 1/4
— Nova Scotia Health (@HealthNS) July 4, 2022
The notice comes the same day the province revealed it will be dropping all remaining COVID-19 restrictions this week. As of Wednesday, isolation for those who test positive for the virus will shift from being mandatory to “strongly recommended.”
The criteria for testing will also become more stringent. Those without symptoms will no longer be tested, and those who have symptoms but are in a low-risk category will only have access to rapid tests.
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Labour shortages in the health-care sector, as well as COVID-related work interruptions, have forced emergency room closures and led to long wait times across the Maritimes.
In Nova Scotia, the province’s nurses have been demanding action to address chronic staffing shortages that they say have been made worse by the COVID-19 pandemic. The Nova Scotia Nurses’ Union says there are about 1,400 vacancies for registered nurses, and 250 spots open for licenced practical nurses.
Health-care pressures ‘complex’
When asked Monday whether dropping the restrictions would increase infections and further strain the health-care system, chief medical officer of health Dr. Robert Strang said he didn’t anticipate it would have a major impact “in and of itself.”
“What we will be watching is like other provinces starting to see any sort of surge happening from these latest variants B.A.4 and 5,” he said.
“The pressures on our hospitals and emergency departments are complex and multifactorial. COVID would only only be one of those. But we’re certainly cognizant of the role that our COVID response plays in that.”
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In response to the province’s announcement it would drop remaining COVID-19 restrictions, the NDP health critic said Monday the change will “understandably” concern Nova Scotians.
“When the majority of restrictions were removed in March, we saw an increased demand on walk-in clinics, emergency departments and hospitals,” Susan Leblanc said in a statement.
“Today, we hear about people bringing lawn chairs to wait for emergency care they need, hospital units working short, and people waiting hours for paramedics. The health care system is reaching a critical breaking point; for many people working in health care or those trying to get care things keep getting worse.”
— with a file from The Canadian Press
