Sask. expecting ICU patient transfers to increase over the next few weeks
More Saskatchewan intensive care patients are expected to be transferred to Ontario in the coming weeks, according to provincial officials.
Marlo Pritchard, the president of the Saskatchewan Public Safety Agency (SPSA), said transfers are expected to occur daily.
“We are anticipating that the number of transfers will increase early next week to roughly two to four patients per day for the next several weeks to further reduce the strain on the health care system,” Pritchard said, during a media briefing Friday.
These new transfers are in addition to the six patients that have already travelled for care in Ontario. Three more people are scheduled to be taken to Ontario over the weekend.
Derek Miller, emergency operations centre commander with the Saskatchewan Health Authority, said the focus is on COVID-19 ICU patients being transferred out of province, not general ICU patients.
The announcement comes a day after social media posts from doctors sparked confusion about whether the transfers would continue.
The Saskatchewan government released a statement Thursday morning saying the social media posts about ICU patient transfers should be “disregarded.”
Pritchard said all confirmed transfers will be communicated through official channels such as the PEOC or the government’s website, during the briefing on Friday.
A release from the province Friday afternoon said Saskatchewan’s Provincial Emergency Operations Centre has confirmed Ontario is able to receive up to nine more patients early next week – up to three per day on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
What's a Barnacle? It's yellow, sticks and screams if you try to pry it off your car
Barnacles, bright yellow devices used to make sure parking scofflaws pay their tickets, could soon be making their way to cities across Canada.
Verdun Airbnb listing taken down amid complaints, fines and frustration from neighbours
An Airbnb in Montreal's Verdun borough was the source of much frustration from neighbours who say there were constant parties at the location. It has been taken down from the app, but housing advocates remain upset about short-term rentals.
Man who set himself on fire outside Trump trial dies of injuries, police say
A man who doused himself in an accelerant and set himself on fire outside the courthouse where former U.S. President Donald Trump is on trial has died, police said.
They were from different countries and barely spoke each other's languages. More than 20 years later, they're still happily in love
He decided to spend Christmas somewhere that wouldn't involve snowstorm disasters. She was spending the holidays with family, travelling for the first time outside of her native country of Venezuela. 23 years later, they're still in love.
Young people 'tortured' if stolen vehicle operations fail, Montreal police tell MPs
One day after a Montreal police officer fired gunshots at a suspect in a stolen vehicle, senior officers were telling parliamentarians that organized crime groups are recruiting people as young as 15 in the city to steal cars so that they can be shipped overseas.
A Nigerian chess champion plays the royal game for 60 hours - a new global chess record
A Nigerian chess champion and child education advocate played chess nonstop for 60 hours in New York City's Times Square to break the Guinness World Record for the longest chess marathon.
Fire in Labrador town under control, officials tells residents to stay away
RCMP say the fire that prompted a state of emergency in a Labrador town is now under control.
12 students and teacher killed in Columbine school shooting remembered at 25th anniversary vigil
Thirteen victims of the Columbine High School shooting were remembered during a vigil Friday on the eve of the 25th anniversary of the shooting that was the worst the nation had seen at the time.
Israeli airstrike in southern Gaza city of Rafah kills at least 9 Palestinians, including 6 children
An Israeli airstrike on a house in Gaza's southernmost city of Rafah killed at least nine people, six of them children, hospital authorities said Saturday, as Israel pursued its nearly seven-month offensive in the besieged Palestinian territory.