Surgeries will be gradually resuming in Niagara next week.
Niagara Health says it is cautiously starting to resume elective surgeries and procedures as of Tuesday, May 25, starting with day surgeries and other outpatient procedures.
Inpatient surgeries will start later in the week.
“This is terrific news for our patients and teams,” says Lynn Guerriero, President and Interim CEO at Niagara Health. “We understand the impact the postponement of scheduled surgeries and procedures have had on our patients, their families and caregivers, and our teams are working full out to safely reintroduce these services.”
Niagara Health postponed non-emergent and non-urgent surgeries and procedures in April, along with all Ontario hospitals, as the third wave of the pandemic hit the health care sector hard.
Earlier today, the Officer of Health cleared the way for hospitals across the province to resume surgeries and procedures as COVID numbers and hospital admissions start to decrease.
“Although our teams are eager to reintroduce these services and address our backlog, we will need to be cautious and innovative with our efforts,” says Dr. Johan Viljoen, Chief of Staff at Niagara Health. “Thankfully, hospitalizations and ICU admissions appear to be trending downward. However, our ICUs continue to be under significant pressure from patient volume and staffing perspectives.”
In Niagara, 45 people are being treated for the virus in hospital, down from 53 yesterday.
23 remain in the ICU.