Ontario confirms the province will help Alberta with overwhelmed ICUs
Ontario Health Minister Christine Elliott confirms the province will help Alberta manage its overwhelmed intensive care units (ICUs), which have been inundated with COVID-19 patients, operating at 155 per cent over normal capacity.
“There was a time when Ontario needed some help as well and other provinces helped us,” Elliott said, after making an announcement in Tweed, Ont., on Friday.
In April, the Ford government reached out to every province and territory asking for help with health-care resources to manage overloaded ICUs. At the time, Alberta declined to send help due to a sharp increase in their own hospitalizations.
“Our officials, they're having conversations right now about exactly what they need, and we will be there to support them and help them,” she said.
Elliott said she expects supporting Alberta’s ICUs would be “at the top of the list” of Ontario’s response. Although, she did not disclose any details on how the province plans on providing this support. “Frankly, I think that their intensive care units are very full right now,” she said.
“Ontario has graciously offered their help, and we're in discussions with them regarding potential transfer of patients if needed,” Dr. Verna Yiu, the head of Alberta Health Services (AHS), told reporters on Thursday
Alberta has a total of 310 ICU beds. Currently, 86 per cent of those beds are occupied, primarily by COVID-19 patients, Yiu said on Thursday.
"If the numbers keep increasing, right now we're seeing on average about 18 to 20 new COVID ICU admissions every single day,” she said. “We need to bend that curve.”
Alberta Premier Jason Kenney declared a public health emergency for the province on Wednesday, describing the current situation as a “crisis of the unvaccinated.”
With files from the Canadian Press.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
NEW After hearing thousands of last words, this hospital chaplain has advice for the living
Hospital chaplain J.S. Park opens up about death, grief and hearing thousands of last words, and shares his advice for the living.
BREAKING Police cordon off Iran consulate in Paris where man threatens to blow himself up: French media
French police cordoned off the Iranian consulate in Paris on Friday, where a man was threatening to blow himself up, Europe 1 radio and BFM TV.
Some Canadian families will receive up to $620 per child today
More money will land in the pockets of some Canadian families on Friday for the latest Canada Child Benefit installment.
BREAKING Iran fires at apparent Israeli attack drones near Isfahan air base and nuclear site
An apparent Israeli drone attack on Iran saw troops fire air defences at a major air base and a nuclear site early Friday morning near the central city of Isfahan, an assault coming in retaliation for Tehran's unprecedented drone-and-missile assault on the country.
American millionaire Jonathan Lehrer denied bail after being charged with killing Canadian couple
American millionaire Jonathan Lehrer, one of two men charged in the killings of a Canadian couple in Dominica, has been denied bail.
Ottawa to force banks to call carbon rebate a carbon rebate in direct deposits
Canadian banks that refuse to identify the carbon rebate by name when doing direct deposits are forcing the government to change the law to make them do it, says Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault.
Ontario woman loses $15,000 to fake Walmart job scam
A woman who recently moved to Canada from India was searching for a job when she got caught in an online job scam and lost $15,000.
After COVID, WHO defines disease spread 'through air'
The World Health Organization and around 500 experts have agreed for the first time on what it means for a disease to spread through the air, in a bid to avoid the confusion early in the COVID-19 pandemic that some scientists have said cost lives.
Prince Harry formally confirms he is now a U.S. resident
Prince Harry, the son of King Charles III and fifth in line to the British throne, has formally confirmed he is now a U.S. resident.