Sudden surge in COVID-19 patients forces North Bay hospital to cancel some surgeries
A sudden increase in the number of people entering hospital because of COVID-19 in the last 24 hours has filled almost all available beds at North Bay Regional Health Centre.
The dramatic increase – eight people – has filled all beds set aside for COVID-19 patients. All of those suffering from the disease are from the area, the hospital said in a statement Tuesday.
"The health centre has enacted the final stage of its COVID-19 bed plan, which is triggered when all of our designated COVID-19 beds are full," the hospital said.
"This increase in COVID-19 patients, combined with our existing bed pressures, means our hospital will have to increase measures to protect and preserve our hospital’s capacity to provide acute care. This could include patients being moved to unconventional spaces such as a sunroom."
Effective Tuesday, all surgeries requiring a hospital stay have been postponed.
"The postponement of these surgeries will be assessed on a weekly basis," the hospital said. "Outpatient surgeries will continue as well as confirmed cancer cases."
Patients with existing surgeries and appointments will be contacted directly by the hospital. Patients can still attend scheduled outpatient appointments and our emergency department remains open.
"In an emergency, please don’t hesitate or delay receiving care," the hospital said. "Our health centre is prepared to safely provide care to all our patients."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'They needed people inside Air Canada:' Police announce arrests in Pearson gold heist
Police say one former and one current employee of Air Canada are among the nine suspects that are facing charges in connection with the gold heist at Pearson International Airport last year.
House admonishes ArriveCan contractor in rare parliamentary show of power
MPs enacted an extraordinary, rarely used parliamentary power on Wednesday, summonsing an ArriveCan contractor to appear before the House of Commons where he was admonished publicly and forced to provide answers to the questions MPs said he'd previously evaded.
Leafs star Auston Matthews finishes season with 69 goals
Auston Matthews won't be joining the NHL's 70-goal club this season.
Trump lawyers say Stormy Daniels refused subpoena outside a Brooklyn bar, papers left 'at her feet'
Donald Trump's legal team says it tried serving Stormy Daniels a subpoena as she arrived for an event at a bar in Brooklyn last month, but the porn actor, who is expected to be a witness at the former president's criminal trial, refused to take it and walked away.
Why drivers in Eastern Canada could see big gas price spikes, and other Canadians won't
Drivers in Eastern Canada face a big increase in gas prices because of various factors, especially the higher cost of the summer blend, industry analysts say.
Doug Ford calls on Ontario Speaker to reverse Queen's Park keffiyeh ban
Ontario Premier Doug Ford is calling on Speaker Ted Arnott to reverse a ban on keffiyehs at Queen's Park, describing the move as “needlessly” divisive.
'A living nightmare': Winnipeg woman sentenced following campaign of harassment against man after online date
A Winnipeg woman was sentenced to house arrest after a single date with a man she met online culminated in her harassing him for years, and spurred false allegations which resulted in the innocent man being arrested three times.
Woman who pressured boyfriend to kill his ex in 2000s granted absences from prison
A woman who pressured her boyfriend into killing his teenage ex more than a decade ago will be allowed to leave prison for weeks at a time.
Customers disappointed after email listing $60K Tim Hortons prize sent in error
Several Tim Horton’s customers are feeling great disappointment after being told by the company that an email stating they won a boat worth nearly $60,000 was sent in error.