COVID-19: all Vitalité Health Network hospitals and facilities in red alert phase
Bathurst, Thursday, October 7, 2021 – In response to the increase in the number of cases of COVID-19 and hospitalizations, Vitalité Health Network has announced that all of its hospitals and facilities will be placed on red alert as of Tuesday, October 12, 2021. For the Campbellton Regional Hospital, this measure is effective immediately due to an in-hospital outbreak.
As such, all non-essential health care and services will be greatly reduced or temporarily suspended:
- Ambulatory care services;
- Professional services (physiotherapy, occupational therapy, nutrition, etc.);
- Non-urgent medical imaging services (x-rays, scans, etc.);
- Elective surgeries.
According to the Network's President and CEO, Dr. France Desrosiers, the current situation leaves no other option. "We must go to red alert internally so that we can temporarily reduce or suspend non-essential services and thereby redeploy staff to maintain our emergency services and intensive care units and the care of patients with COVID-19 who are hospitalized," she said.
"We must also keep in mind that this is being done in the context of a severe staffing shortage, which adds to the seriousness and complexity of the situation.” According to Dr. Desrosiers, the most recent epidemiological projections indicate an increase in the number of hospitalizations over the next few weeks and the Network must be prepared to deal with this.
The Network will contact patients who have appointments in order to reschedule, if necessary.
The Network thanks the public for their valuable cooperation as we face this wave of the pandemic, which is having an unprecedented impact on the province's health care system. Our priority remains to ensure that essential services are maintained for the public.
