SYDNEY — As the Nova Scotia Health Authority continues to gradually reopen services and programs, some people are wary about going back into hospitals.
“I think there’s caution that people in the public are continuing to have in relation to health-care services and any services, and I think it’s warranted," said Brett MacDougall, executive director of operations for the eastern zone, Cape Breton, Antigonish and Guysborough counties, who noted there was a recent small cluster of COVID-19 patients in New Brunswick.
“It’s not as if the coronavirus has disappeared.”
MacDougall said it’s good to be cautious, but people need to know all precautions are in place at health-care facilities and people needing urgent and emergency care must come in for treatment.
“So if we are calling patients and families for appointments, they can be assured we have the appropriate measures there so that they can come and receive their appointment safely.”
As of May 25, the health authority started reopening services and programs that were put on hold due to the pandemic.
“Physical distancing is sort of the key strategy that we are relying on,” he said.
Waiting rooms and access to the health-care facilities are being redesigned. Everyone coming into health-care facilities will be screened.
Jim McIntyre, 75, of Glace Bay, has been taking his wife Marg, 77, to the Cape Breton Regional Hospital for three years for dialysis three times a week. There is a separate entrance to the unit around the back of the hospital where he escorts her up to a waiting area.
McIntyre said social distancing is practised and if you don’t have a mask, the nurse will get you one and also takes your temperature. He said they are comfortable going because there are safety measures in place.
“I think it’s pretty good in that unit in those scenarios."
Nellie Adams of Sydney told the Post she has an underlying medical condition and is nervous going to a hospital for blood tests.
"I’m waiting a wee bit longer.”
REOPENING OF SERVICES
The health authority announced on May 25 it would be gradually reintroducing and increasing capacity for all services and programs.
The goal was 25 per cent but in many cases, they’ve been able to achieve greater than that in their first week, MacDougall said.
One of the key areas of service they introduced is surgery. While emergency, urgent and time-sensitive cancer surgeries continued during COVID-19, a total of 3,214 scheduled surgeries province-wide were placed on hold between March 16 and May 25. About 25 per cent are in the eastern zone.
Surgical hours have been expanded into the weekend and most recently included dental and ophthalmology procedures.
At the Cape Breton Regional Hospital, surgical throughput over the last four weeks is at 70 per cent of the previous capacity.
“Our goal in phase two is to add in surgical procedures in North Sydney and Glace Bay,” he said. “New Waterford at this point in time will try to shift the services to Glace Bay. That’s really trying to consolidate our staffing and efficiencies in process.”
All aspects of diagnostic imaging have achieved 75 per cent of previous capacity and staff are working to increase that.
“They’ve been able to look at their service delivery right across Cape Breton, including the rural facilities as well,” MacDougall said.
Blood collection services continue by appointment. Provincewide, 32,873 blood samples were collected in April and 40,597 in May. In May, the regional hospital achieved 100 blood collections per day, and in June that was up to about 160 per day. Collections doubled in surrounding hospitals, including from 38 a day in May to 72 in June at the New Waterford Consolidated Hospital, and from 37 in May to 64 in June at the Northside General Hospital.
MacDougall said the health authority is working hard with specialists and physicians to identify patient priorities.
Regarding mental health care, MacDougall said more than 300 appointments scheduled into May of 2021 are now rebooked for 2020.
“It has reduced the wait time for those mental health assessments.”
COVID-19 UNIT
The health authority has also been maintaining its COVID-19 response capability.
“We had to sort of re-engineer and overhaul the health-care system within the eastern zone and try to make adjustments so that we could respond to patients that were suspect COVID-19 and/or positive COVID-19 patients,” MacDougall said.
As the rate of COVID-19 positive patients has started to decline, they’ve adjusted services and reduced the COVID-19 in-patient response.
A full COVID-19 unit arranged in the intensive-care unit has been reduced to two private isolation areas.
The two COVID units in the eastern zone have been downsized. The 15 COVID-19 positive patient beds at St. Martha’s Regional Hospital in Antigonish have been reduced to two. A full in-patient COVID-19 positive suspect unit of 32 beds at the regional hospital has been reduced to nine.
MacDougall said they have the ability to expand and increase their response beds if needed while keeping all the precautionary measures in place to ensure patient and staff safety.
VISITING
The health authority is continuing to review visitor guidelines because it’s important for patients to have the support of their loved ones while receiving care.
“The challenge again is to ensure that we’re able to create situations for that type of touchpoint for patients but still maintain public health measures of six feet and masking,” MacDougall said.
“We’re certainly empathic with families and patients and we’re hoping to have something in the next short period of time in relation to providing ability for loved ones in some circumstance to have that contact.”
MacDougall said staff, physicians and managers have done an outstanding job over the last several months.
“They’re an amazing group to work with,” he said. “Our focus again has been making sure we can provide as much access to care and in a safe way.”
Visit NSHA online at http://www.nshealth.ca/ for a full update on all services and programs.
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