You may have worried about visiting local hospitals because of the reported increase in COVID cases during the pandemic’s third wave.
We have official word that County hospitals are safe.
Dr. Robert Cushman, Acting Medical Officer of Health for the Renfrew County and District Health Unit explains that hospitalized COVID-positive patients in the district are either admitted to a dedicated COVID unit at the Pembroke Regional Hospital (PRH) or they are transferred to an Ottawa hospital for additional ICU (Intensive Care Unit) treatment.
Occasionally the other hospitals in the RCDHU catchment area treat a new COVID-positive case in the Emergency Department before transferring the patient to PRH or Ottawa.
Rarely, a patient being transferred back from Ottawa to a local hospital turns out to be positive.
In these situations, the patients are appropriately isolated, testing is done on staff and patients who might be at risk, and COVID cleaning practices occur.
In all of the region’s hospitals, patients are screened at entry and those presenting with symptoms are quickly segregated and provided with appropriate PPE.
The risk of contracting COVID-19 through an emergency department visit or an appointment in another part of the hospital is minimal.
If you need treatment at hospital you should seek it out rather than putting it off.
Avoiding treatment for some conditions can be very risky.
Your family doctor or RCVTAC can advise you whether to go to the hospital or not.