Chatham-Kent Health Alliance Accepts Patient Transfers from Hotspot Regions to Help Ease Critical Care Pressure on Wider System
CHATHAM-KENT: April 20, 2021 – Today Chatham-Kent Health Alliance (CKHA) in partnership with Chatham-Kent EMS accepted its first patient transfer from the Greater Toronto Area to help ease critical care pressure on the wider health care system. Hospitals across the province continue to rely on the leadership of the Provincial Critical Care Command Table and the practice of transferring patients out of hotspot regions in response to all-time high COVID-19 hospitalizations and Intensive Care Unit (ICU) admissions.
“It is our duty and moral obligation to help our neighbours during this difficult time,” said Lori Marshall, President and CEO, CKHA. “I’m proud of our staff and physicians at CKHA for their dedication to saving lives across our province. Please do your part to help us weather this third wave by following all public health and lockdown measures.”
Currently, CKHA’s ICU occupancy sits at 50 per cent capacity (five of ten beds are occupied). There are two COVID-19 positive patients in hospital; one is a non-Chatham-Kent resident. Based on direction from the province, CKHA continues to “ramp down” non-urgent, elective/scheduled care and procedures to accept patient transfers from other regions with a quick turnaround time (i.e. within hours, not days). Like all hospitals across Ontario, beds at CKHA are a provincial asset.
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About CKHA
Chatham-Kent Health Alliance (CKHA) is a 200 bed community hospital, serving the residents of Chatham and rural Kent including Walpole Island and Delaware First Nations. Formed in 2018, CKHA is committed to delivering quality and safe care at its two sites in Chatham and Wallaceburg. CKHA collaborates with other partners to deliver care across its community. CKHA’s dedicated team is comprised of approximately 1,400 staff, 200 physicians and 300 volunteers. CKHA provides a full range of programs, services and specialties from internal medicine and surgery to women & children’s and critical care; it is designated a schedule one facility under the Ministry of Health and cares for tens of thousands of inpatients, outpatients and emergency patients annually. CKHA is equipped with state of the art diagnostics and technology to support its varied programs. CKHA’s vision: Together, growing a healthier community, underscores a movement to improving the population’s health. Grounded by its values “CKHA CARES” (Collaboration, Accountability, Respect, Excellence, Safety), CKHA commits to continuously improve the patient experience in partnership with patients, families and caregivers. For more information, click here to read CKHA’s Fast Facts.
Media contact:
Fannie Vavoulis, Director, Communications
Chatham-Kent Health Alliance
