FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
December 8, 2022
The King government has no plan to deal with more patients in hospitals suffering from respiratory illnesses, say Liberal MLAs.
“I raised this issue weeks ago in the Legislature when I asked the Minister of Health what steps the government has taken to deal with surge capacity in our EDs,” said MLA Gord McNeilly (Charlottetown-West Royalty). “Health officials have been warning us since September about the combination of COVID, RSV and influenza would put added stress on the system, but we still have no plan from this government.”
Liberal Health Critic MLA Robert Henderson (O’Leary-Inverness) says an influx of patients to Island hospitals is overwhelming EDs and causing burnout for health care staff. Waits are longer because admissions to hospitals are being kept in EDs since there’s a shortage of hospital beds.
“We’ve expressed our concerns for some time now, and Health PEI says it’s monitoring the situation,” said Henderson. “But if this government was competent at managing the province, it would have already put in place a plan for overcapacity. Instead, patients are waiting hours to be seen in EDs.”
Island hospitals have seen more young people in their EDs in recent weeks because respiratory illnesses have been circulating quickly. Health officials are calling on families to get their young children the flu shot to protect themselves.
“Time and again, this government has shown it has no plan when it comes to health care,” said McNeilly. “They’re just doing everything on the fly and barely responding to the needs of Islanders.”
“This government acknowledged this flu season would get worse before it got better,” added Henderson. “How much worse can it get and when will the government act before it’s too late?”
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