(rdnewsNOW file photo)

By Josh Hall (Twitter: @Vancan19)

temporary, ahs stresses

General surgeries being diverted from Red Deer Regional Hospital

Apr 29, 2022 | 7:58 PM

Surgeries are being diverted from Red Deer Regional Hospital, as of Friday afternoon, according to Alberta Health Services.

Friday at about 6 p.m., it was the provincial Opposition NDP who issued a release that they’d obtained an internal memo stating as much.

It says diversions were to begin at 5 p.m., for an indefinite time period.

AHS confirmed the memo’s details to rdnewsNOW, but stressed that the change is temporary.

“Some surgical patients will be diverted from Red Deer Regional Hospital Centre (RDRHC) to other sites to ensure they get the care they need. This is a temporary measure, and AHS is working hard to resume normal surgical services at the site,” says AHS.

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“Patients with scheduled procedures, emergency cases that cannot safely be transferred, and on-call coverage for existing inpatients will continued to be provided at RDRHC.”

Depending on their condition, AHS says, patients may be diverted to surgical sites in Camrose, Rocky Mountain House, Drumheller, Edmonton or Calgary.

“We acknowledge that this will cause some stress and anxiety to some of our surgical patients, however we have exhausted all efforts to avoid this temporary diversion,” AHS’ statement continues.

“These measures are due to a number of factors, including a shortage of clinical assistants who support the General Surgery program.”

The diversion, AHS clarifies is only for the general surgery program at this time, which includes procedures such as appendectomies, bowel resections, laparotomies and gallbladder removals.

“The situation will be reviewed and evaluated regularly as recruitment efforts continue and will be lifted as soon as possible,” AHS concludes.

Meantime, the NDP Health Critic David Shepherd is taking aim at the governing UCP over the diversions.

“This is another absolute failure of leadership from the UCP who continue to damage the healthcare Alberta families rely on,” said Shepherd. “Earlier this week, ambulances lined up 14 deep in the Red Deer hospital parking lot waiting to reach emergency care and now there is no capacity for surgeries in Alberta’s third-largest city. We can’t trust the UCP to deliver public healthcare for people when and where they need it.”

Shepherd notes recent disruptions to care around central Alberta, including in Rocky Mountain House, Sylvan Lake, and Rimbey, which already add pressure to a very busy hospital.

“We need a plan,” Shepherd said. “We need action from the government to improve care in Red Deer and right across the province. Parking lot medicine and cancelled surgeries are totally unacceptable.”

Back on Feb. 23, the UCP announced $1.8 billion to expand the Red Deer Regional Hospital Centre, with completion by 2030.

That came after the UCP committed $100 million towards expansion in 2020, and then completed a business case late last year.

READ MORE

April 29, 2022: Woman refused info that elderly mom’s unit was on COVID lockdown at Red Deer Regional Hospital

April 27, 2022: NDP sounds the alarm on ambulance backlog at Red Deer Regional Hospital Centre

Feb. 23, 2022: $1.8 billion announced for Red Deer hospital expansion

Dec. 4, 2021: Hospital construction timeline unknown, but business case complete