REGINA -The Regina General Hospital and Pasqua Hospital reached a capacity of 105 per cent Tuesday, as the health region continues to deal with the province’s population increase.
Both sites went above capacity by 12 p.m. on Feb. 23.
“We’ve just got more people in the province.” – Glen Perchie, executive director of emergency and EMS
Glen Perchie, executive director of emergency and EMS at the Regina Qu’Appelle Health Region, said there are 70 patients in ER and 33 beds at the Regina General Hospital.
He added the numbers have been higher in the past but this isn’t an ideal situation.
“We’ve got some fairly high acuity, some really sick patients and actually both sites are pretty full right now,” Perchie said.
According to Perchie, both hospitals are seeing flu cases, but it isn’t the only reason wait times have been rising.
“We’ve just got more people in the province,” Perchie said.
He said both hospitals work hard to move patients through the system efficiently, but the staff do have do have to deal with a higher volume of patients.
People in need of urgent care, such as someone with chest pains, are still being seen quickly, Perchie said.
“We’ve been quite full for the last three weeks,” Perchie said. “We are still seeing high acuity patients very quickly, but anybody who can wait is waiting and that’s frustrating for patients, I know.”
Callers told Global Regina have complained of waiting 10 to 20 hours in the emergency rooms.
Perchie recommends seeing a family doctor or nurse practitioner, or visiting a walk-in clinic, unless a person’s case is serious. However, he said there are very few people in the hospital right now that could be seen at a walk-in clinic.
Saskatchewan residents can also call the Health Line for medical advice by dialing 811 or 1-877-800-0002.
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