ALBERTA ICU ADMISSIONS SOAR
Province scrambles to free up beds
Alberta's top doctor on Thursday lashed out at those who leaked audio recordings purporting to indicate her frustrations over the Kenney government's decisions on battling COVID-19 as hospitalization numbers surged.
Those comments came on a day when the number of ICU patients saw one of the biggest day-to-day increases, going from 71 to 84.
There were also 10 more deaths, bringing the provincial fatality total to 510. Two of those were in the Calgary zone.
That increase in ICU occupancy is an 18 per cent jump in a single day, something medical experts are calling a grave concern.
Total hospitalization numbers also jumped from 355 to 383 over the same period, two days after the province announced new measures to slow the spread of the disease, which grew by 1,077 new cases Thursday. Those numbers aren't entirely surprising, said Alberta Health Minister Tyler Shandro.
“In the short term, we may see cases and hospitalizations continue to rise,” he said. On Wednesday, the province announced it would be readying 400 additional COVID-19 ICU beds as hospitalization numbers continue to rise.
Alberta chief medical officer of health Dr. Deena Hinshaw on Thursday continued to plead with Albertans to comply with a new order banning any private social gatherings beyond immediate family circles.
“Let's bring the numbers down in time for restrictions to ease for the holidays,” said Hinshaw, who has indicated it might be three weeks before the full effect of the new restrictions is fully known.
A number of physicians throughout the province have warned more COVID-19 pressure on the hospital system will delay surgeries and divert resources from other units.
One reason for that is the labour-intensive nature of treating COVID-19 patients and their long length of stay, said Peter Lougheed Centre ICU physician Dan Niven.
“It's typically a two-week ICU stay for COVID-19 patients — the outflow of patients is not fast, they tend to stick around for a while,” Niven said earlier this week.
Of those ICU patients, 23 per cent die “in spite of everything we can do for them,” he said.
While Alberta Health officials say they have plans to manage staff resources by pivoting them to COVID-19 treatment when needed, Niven said that — and the availability of some specialized equipment — are a concern.
If trends continue, it's inevitable that other medical specialists first — then surgeons — will be redeployed to COVID-19 duty within a few weeks, said Edmonton physician Tehseen Ladha.
“You're going to have people with no experience (in that area) and that ICU mortality rate isn't going to stay at 25 per cent,” said Ladha.
“Everyone knows beds are running out quick.”
Ladha said she's not confident the latest public health measures the province has imposed will head off those moves.
One bright spot, said Hinshaw, is that Alberta is yet to record any influenza infections that would add to the health-care system's burden. By this time last year, there were 464 recorded cases.
“But it does not mean influenza is no longer a threat,” she said.
The audio recordings of private meetings involving Alberta Health officials from last June leaked to CBC appear to show Hinshaw's frustration over the government's response to COVID-19 she feared leaned more toward economic and civil rights considerations than public health.
They also suggest tension between Hinshaw and elected officials over issues such as testing and enforcement of restrictions.
On Wednesday, Hinshaw refused to reveal what recommendations she provided to the government before it announced new measures on Tuesday that many medical experts fear don't go far enough to curb the rapidly spreading virus.
Those measures allowed bars, restaurants and all stores to remain open, though at reduced capacity, while only imposing mandatory masking at workplaces in the Edmonton and Calgary areas.
She noted the final decisions are always made by cabinet and that her “recommendations were respectfully considered.”
On Thursday, Hinshaw said it was “profoundly disappointing that confidential interactions have been shared ... this is a personal betrayal and a betrayal of the trust we put in each other.”
She defended her refusal to divulge what specific advice she provided to cabinet members, saying that's protected under an oath of confidentiality.
Shandro echoed her words, saying he has “complete confidence” in Hinshaw, who “has nothing to apologize for.”
Meanwhile, NDP Leader Rachel Notley said it's clear the Kenney government can't be trusted to base its COVID-19 policy on medical evidence and called for the creation of an independent panel of peer-reviewed experts whose advice to lawmakers would be public.
“Trust has been broken and that presents a profound risk in our battle with the virus,” said Notley.
She also said a Facebook video posted Wednesday of Premier Jason Kenney — saying the decision not to impose provincewide mandatory masking was due to a feared rural backlash — was a cowardly abdication of leadership.
In the video, Kenney said he was told by a rural MLA that a 50 per cent use of masks in his riding reached after months of encouragement would crumble if the province forced their use.
“If the government tells them to, we would do something counterproductive, so I'd exercise just a bit of common sense,” said Kenney.
Said Notley: “It's now clear our leadership structure is broken.”
Let's bring numbers down in time for restrictions to ease for the holidays.