Tonka
New member
http://www.calgaryherald.com/entert...Alberta+hospitals+hotlines/2152342/story.html
CALGARY - Hospitals around Alberta are seeing a rapid increase in patients and dozens of Calgary schools are reporting higher absentee rates as a second wave of H1N1 influenza hits the province.
Alberta Health Services said city emergency rooms have been so busy, medical staff have been moved from other areas of the hospital to help.
The health superboard also said its HealthLink telephone hotline has been "very busy" fielding calls from people concerned about H1N1.
At Alberta Children's Hospital on Wednesday, worried parents with sick children crowded the ER, many wearing surgical masks as they waited to see a physician.
Health officials did not have statistics on average wait times, but families said they were waiting at least three hours to see a doctor in the morning.
Dozens of people filled the emergency waiting room at Peter Lougheed Hospital over the dinner hour, many coughing under their surgical masks.
One of those was Jessika Alexander, 20, who said she fell ill Tuesday night.
"I was lying in bed and all of a sudden I started coughing and felt pain all over, from my head down to my toes.
"I've never felt this kind of pain and soreness in all my life. I don't know if I have the swine flu, but whatever this is, it's awful," said Alexander.
Health officials say the medical system is coping so far.
"What we're seeing now compared to the summer is greatly increased influenza activity in the community," said Dr. Judy MacDonald, deputy medical officer of health for the superboard.
"We were anticipating this; we heard about the waves of pandemic, and this is indeed the second wave," said MacDonald.
Alberta Health Minister Ron Liepert said Wednesday that emergency wards and medical clinics in the rest of the province are also experiencing an increase in patients and inquiries connected to H1N1 concerns.
The influx is causing some strain on the health system, which the province is looking to address.
"Over the couple of days I hope that we will be in a position to implement some strategy that will help alleviate that," Liepert said at the legislature.
News of the increase in cases comes on the first week of Alberta's massive campaign to vaccinate residents against H1N1, the virus also known as swine flu that first emerged in Mexico during the spring and has since spread around the world.
Alberta Health Services said the number of suspected H1N1 cases in schools also appears to be growing this week, with dozens of Calgary schools reporting absentee rates of higher than 10 per cent.
"We have had in place for many, many years the relationship with schools to contact public health when their absenteeism rate goes above 10 per cent," said the superboard's MacDonald.
"What we're seeing now, I've never seen before."
But Education Minister Dave Hancock urged calm. "The key here is not to panic," he added.
While H1N1 has mostly caused mild disease, officials say some patients are being hospitalized and, in rare cases, are being admitted to intensive care units.
In total, nearly 200 Albertans with H1N1 have been admitted to hospital since the new strain of influenza first began spreading in the spring.
But physicians say only those who need medical attention should visit emergency rooms and that healthy people with mild symptoms can recover at home.
MacDonald said people who are having trouble breathing, experiencing chest pain or are running a fever for more than four days should see a physician.
She added that patients should look at Alberta Health Services'website to learn how to manage mild illness at home before calling HealthLink.
At Alberta Children's Hospital Wednesday, several parents said they came to emergency because their child had flu-like symptoms and they were worried after a healthy Toronto boy--Evan Frustaglio-- died from H1N1 this week.
"The story about the 13-year-old in Ontario has panicked parents," said Bert Hamilton, whose nine-year-old son was waiting in emergency at Alberta Children's Hospital.
Premier Ed Stelmach also said two recent H1N1-related deaths--Frustaglio and another young Canadian --are likely weighing heavily on the minds of many Albertans.
He encouraged people who aren't
feeling well and who are unsure of what's wrong to phone HealthLink and speak to nurses or touch base with their family doctor.
"We will work through it," the premier told reporters in Calgary.
Rahim Mohammed said he went to his neighbourhood medical clinic before visiting the emergency room at Peter Lougheed.
"My doctor took one look at me and gave me a letter that said to get to emergency right away," said Mohammed, 30.
He was lying in a waiting room chair, wrapped in a hospital sheet, wearing a tuque and shivering.
He said he was fine one day and violently ill by Wednesday.
"At first I thought it was a cold and now I feel like I am dying, like it's killing me."
As hospitals deal with an increase in patients, the provincial campaign to immunize Albertans against H1N1 administered more than 100,000 shots in its first two days.
In Calgary alone, health officials say they've vaccinated 28,000 residents of the city and surrounding rural areas, plus some 9,000 health workers.
Liepert, who quietly toured Edmonton clinics and emergency rooms on Wednesday, said in the legislature the vaccination program is an "incredible success" because of the high turnout.
The program has been heavily criticized for long lineups and only a handful of clinics in Calgary and Edmonton to serve the province's two largest cities.
In Calgary, Alberta Health Services added a fifth clinic at the University of Calgary's Olympic Oval to serve people who have trouble standing in line, including the elderly and pregnant women. Still, patients who went to the clinic Wednesday faced multi-hour waits.
"It was the largest line ever," said Andrea Naderi, who waited about three hours with her two children. "It's great that it is inside, but it could have been run better."
By mid-morning, the lineup at the clinic stretched through the university's kinesiology complex and several people chose not to wait.
"We talked to lots of families that are turning back and that is sad," said Gerry Webster, 73, who left after estimating the wait could have been about seven hours.
Health officials said they are doing their best to accommodate the large crowds, but they do not have any plans at this time to add another Calgary clinic.
Stelmach said many of the waits are due to the fact that the province is giving all Albertans first crack at the shot, not just high-risk groups. He noted in other provinces where long lines haven't been an issue that the vaccine is only to be offered to high-risk groups for now, while the general population must wait.
"We'll be doing whatever we can to vaccinate the whole population," the premier said.
mlang@theherald.canwest.com
rdaliesio@theherald.canwest.com
CALGARY - Hospitals around Alberta are seeing a rapid increase in patients and dozens of Calgary schools are reporting higher absentee rates as a second wave of H1N1 influenza hits the province.
Alberta Health Services said city emergency rooms have been so busy, medical staff have been moved from other areas of the hospital to help.
The health superboard also said its HealthLink telephone hotline has been "very busy" fielding calls from people concerned about H1N1.
At Alberta Children's Hospital on Wednesday, worried parents with sick children crowded the ER, many wearing surgical masks as they waited to see a physician.
Health officials did not have statistics on average wait times, but families said they were waiting at least three hours to see a doctor in the morning.
Dozens of people filled the emergency waiting room at Peter Lougheed Hospital over the dinner hour, many coughing under their surgical masks.
One of those was Jessika Alexander, 20, who said she fell ill Tuesday night.
"I was lying in bed and all of a sudden I started coughing and felt pain all over, from my head down to my toes.
"I've never felt this kind of pain and soreness in all my life. I don't know if I have the swine flu, but whatever this is, it's awful," said Alexander.
Health officials say the medical system is coping so far.
"What we're seeing now compared to the summer is greatly increased influenza activity in the community," said Dr. Judy MacDonald, deputy medical officer of health for the superboard.
"We were anticipating this; we heard about the waves of pandemic, and this is indeed the second wave," said MacDonald.
Alberta Health Minister Ron Liepert said Wednesday that emergency wards and medical clinics in the rest of the province are also experiencing an increase in patients and inquiries connected to H1N1 concerns.
The influx is causing some strain on the health system, which the province is looking to address.
"Over the couple of days I hope that we will be in a position to implement some strategy that will help alleviate that," Liepert said at the legislature.
News of the increase in cases comes on the first week of Alberta's massive campaign to vaccinate residents against H1N1, the virus also known as swine flu that first emerged in Mexico during the spring and has since spread around the world.
Alberta Health Services said the number of suspected H1N1 cases in schools also appears to be growing this week, with dozens of Calgary schools reporting absentee rates of higher than 10 per cent.
"We have had in place for many, many years the relationship with schools to contact public health when their absenteeism rate goes above 10 per cent," said the superboard's MacDonald.
"What we're seeing now, I've never seen before."
But Education Minister Dave Hancock urged calm. "The key here is not to panic," he added.
While H1N1 has mostly caused mild disease, officials say some patients are being hospitalized and, in rare cases, are being admitted to intensive care units.
In total, nearly 200 Albertans with H1N1 have been admitted to hospital since the new strain of influenza first began spreading in the spring.
But physicians say only those who need medical attention should visit emergency rooms and that healthy people with mild symptoms can recover at home.
MacDonald said people who are having trouble breathing, experiencing chest pain or are running a fever for more than four days should see a physician.
She added that patients should look at Alberta Health Services'website to learn how to manage mild illness at home before calling HealthLink.
At Alberta Children's Hospital Wednesday, several parents said they came to emergency because their child had flu-like symptoms and they were worried after a healthy Toronto boy--Evan Frustaglio-- died from H1N1 this week.
"The story about the 13-year-old in Ontario has panicked parents," said Bert Hamilton, whose nine-year-old son was waiting in emergency at Alberta Children's Hospital.
Premier Ed Stelmach also said two recent H1N1-related deaths--Frustaglio and another young Canadian --are likely weighing heavily on the minds of many Albertans.
He encouraged people who aren't
feeling well and who are unsure of what's wrong to phone HealthLink and speak to nurses or touch base with their family doctor.
"We will work through it," the premier told reporters in Calgary.
Rahim Mohammed said he went to his neighbourhood medical clinic before visiting the emergency room at Peter Lougheed.
"My doctor took one look at me and gave me a letter that said to get to emergency right away," said Mohammed, 30.
He was lying in a waiting room chair, wrapped in a hospital sheet, wearing a tuque and shivering.
He said he was fine one day and violently ill by Wednesday.
"At first I thought it was a cold and now I feel like I am dying, like it's killing me."
As hospitals deal with an increase in patients, the provincial campaign to immunize Albertans against H1N1 administered more than 100,000 shots in its first two days.
In Calgary alone, health officials say they've vaccinated 28,000 residents of the city and surrounding rural areas, plus some 9,000 health workers.
Liepert, who quietly toured Edmonton clinics and emergency rooms on Wednesday, said in the legislature the vaccination program is an "incredible success" because of the high turnout.
The program has been heavily criticized for long lineups and only a handful of clinics in Calgary and Edmonton to serve the province's two largest cities.
In Calgary, Alberta Health Services added a fifth clinic at the University of Calgary's Olympic Oval to serve people who have trouble standing in line, including the elderly and pregnant women. Still, patients who went to the clinic Wednesday faced multi-hour waits.
"It was the largest line ever," said Andrea Naderi, who waited about three hours with her two children. "It's great that it is inside, but it could have been run better."
By mid-morning, the lineup at the clinic stretched through the university's kinesiology complex and several people chose not to wait.
"We talked to lots of families that are turning back and that is sad," said Gerry Webster, 73, who left after estimating the wait could have been about seven hours.
Health officials said they are doing their best to accommodate the large crowds, but they do not have any plans at this time to add another Calgary clinic.
Stelmach said many of the waits are due to the fact that the province is giving all Albertans first crack at the shot, not just high-risk groups. He noted in other provinces where long lines haven't been an issue that the vaccine is only to be offered to high-risk groups for now, while the general population must wait.
"We'll be doing whatever we can to vaccinate the whole population," the premier said.
mlang@theherald.canwest.com
rdaliesio@theherald.canwest.com