Hamilton-area hospitals warn beds are full, patients being cared for in hallways | CBC News
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Hamilton Health Sciences (HHS) warns its four hospitals are under “extreme pressure” as all beds are full and some patients are being cared for in hallways.
Hospitals include Hamilton General, Juravinski, McMaster and West Lincoln Memorial. Due to the demand for beds, nine surgeries were deferred this past week, HHS said in a statement Thursday.
“We are seeing a high volume of sicker people in our [emergency departments] due to the viral season,” HHS said.
“At the same time, staff absences due to illness are posing a challenge to meeting the needs of this increased volume of patients.”
The West Lincoln Memorial Hospital in Grimsby is facing “unprecedented capacity pressures,” hitting 134 per cent occupancy this past week, HHS said.
On the Hamilton Mountain, Juravinski Hospital is caring for 500 patients, but has a total of 414 beds. Some patients are in “surge spaces” and “non-traditional locations, such as hallways,” HHS said.
McMaster Children’s Hospital is experiencing a surge of patients as children and youth returned to school and contracted illnesses after the holiday break.
St. Joseph’s Hospital, which operates separate from HHS, said earlier this week that it is also operating at 100 per cent capacity.
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