Tonka
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http://www.cbc.ca/canada/manitoba/story/2009/09/03/mb-swine-flu-winnipeg-kumar.html
Swine flu raises ICU-overload concerns
Last Updated: Thursday, September 3, 2009 | 1:02 PM CT Comments4Recommend1CBC News
A Winnipeg intensive-care specialist hopes an international conference taking place in the city will find ways to deal with the flood of patients that hospitals could see this fall during a second swine flu pandemic.
Dr. Anand Kumar worked during the first wave of the swine flu, or H1N1 influenza A, crisis in the spring.
"Quite frankly, professionally, it was the most frightening experience of my life," he said. "We simply didn't know if we would have sufficient beds in three to four days because we were getting six patients a day. We were fortunate, because the epidemic abated within three to four days of when we would've overloaded."
At one point, there were 60 patients with proven or suspected H1N1 infection in a city with only 70 ICU beds, Kumar said. Most people will not need hospitalization if they get infected with H1N1, but for those who do, about 15 per cent will require ventilators in the ICU, he said.
"It will not just be ventilators [of concern]. Hopefully, we've put into place preparations for medications that might be short ? sedatives is one large group of those," Kumar said.
'Quite frankly, professionally, it was the most frightening experience of my life.'
?Dr. Anand Kumar"Then most importantly, manpower. One of big chokepoints is nursing and respiratory tech manpower. While there are agreements in place to allow transfer of these people between places, how do you actually operationalize that if it becomes necessary? I don't know that planning has progressed too far."
Myrna Driedger, health critic for the Opposition Progressive Conservative party in Manitoba, has also called on provincial Health Minister Theresa Oswald to address the ICU nursing shortage and to prove to Manitobans there is a plan to deal with the expected surge of patients this fall and winter.
Medical experts from across Canada and around the world are gathering in Winnipeg on Wednesday and Thursday for a conference on preparation for the resurgence of H1N1 in the fall.
Health Minister Leona Aglukkaq said the pandemic conference is the first of its kind. She said delegates will review possible outcomes of the epidemic, and develop standardized guidelines for medical personnel in rural communities and hospital intensive care units.
Canada's chief public health officer David Butler-Jones said the conference will play a key role in determining many of Canada's H1N1 guidelines for the fall flu season.
Public health officials say an H1N1 vaccine will be available by mid-November and they're confident that will be enough time to protect every Canadian who wants it.
Swine flu raises ICU-overload concerns
Last Updated: Thursday, September 3, 2009 | 1:02 PM CT Comments4Recommend1CBC News
A Winnipeg intensive-care specialist hopes an international conference taking place in the city will find ways to deal with the flood of patients that hospitals could see this fall during a second swine flu pandemic.
Dr. Anand Kumar worked during the first wave of the swine flu, or H1N1 influenza A, crisis in the spring.
"Quite frankly, professionally, it was the most frightening experience of my life," he said. "We simply didn't know if we would have sufficient beds in three to four days because we were getting six patients a day. We were fortunate, because the epidemic abated within three to four days of when we would've overloaded."
At one point, there were 60 patients with proven or suspected H1N1 infection in a city with only 70 ICU beds, Kumar said. Most people will not need hospitalization if they get infected with H1N1, but for those who do, about 15 per cent will require ventilators in the ICU, he said.
"It will not just be ventilators [of concern]. Hopefully, we've put into place preparations for medications that might be short ? sedatives is one large group of those," Kumar said.
'Quite frankly, professionally, it was the most frightening experience of my life.'
?Dr. Anand Kumar"Then most importantly, manpower. One of big chokepoints is nursing and respiratory tech manpower. While there are agreements in place to allow transfer of these people between places, how do you actually operationalize that if it becomes necessary? I don't know that planning has progressed too far."
Myrna Driedger, health critic for the Opposition Progressive Conservative party in Manitoba, has also called on provincial Health Minister Theresa Oswald to address the ICU nursing shortage and to prove to Manitobans there is a plan to deal with the expected surge of patients this fall and winter.
Medical experts from across Canada and around the world are gathering in Winnipeg on Wednesday and Thursday for a conference on preparation for the resurgence of H1N1 in the fall.
Health Minister Leona Aglukkaq said the pandemic conference is the first of its kind. She said delegates will review possible outcomes of the epidemic, and develop standardized guidelines for medical personnel in rural communities and hospital intensive care units.
Canada's chief public health officer David Butler-Jones said the conference will play a key role in determining many of Canada's H1N1 guidelines for the fall flu season.
Public health officials say an H1N1 vaccine will be available by mid-November and they're confident that will be enough time to protect every Canadian who wants it.