COVID-19 outbreak highlighted the uneven pace of progress at existing homes and health centres and an urgent need for alternative care
Reta, 94, is a patient at Southlake Regional Health Centre, which has been lauded for its program helping seniors be discharged quickly so they may return home with health care support.Hospitals in Ontario are planning to provide health care services to more seniors in their own homes and house patients who no longer need acute care in retirement residences and hotels, as they brace for a potential second wave of the coronavirus.
“This is about transitioning from crisis management, which we did in the spring, to living with COVID,” said David Pichora, chief executive officer of Kingston Health Sciences Centre and member of a government committee planning for the next wave of the pandemic. “Nobody wants to go back to what we were doing in April.”
The Kingston region in southeastern Ontario is losing 300 of its 4,000 long-term care beds as a result of the new admission restrictions, Dr. Pichora said. His hospital admitted 78 patients to long-term care in June, about a third of the normal volume.Hospitals also will do everything possible to avoid cancelling surgeries again, said Dr. Pichora. There are no data in Canada linking cancelled surgeries to mortality rates. In the U.S.
Administrators at Southlake hospital, picured here on July 20, 2020, are exploring the use of neighbouring retirement homes for some patients.A Ministry of Health spokeswoman said the government is working on a plan to help hospitals manage capacity, including looking at using hotels and other alternative sites beyond Sept. 30.
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