Hospital Emergency Department physicians across Renfrew County are now concerned for the health and safety of paitents who need care but have held off visiting hospitals because of COVID-19. The Chief of Emergency at Pembroke Regional Hospital says they are seeing an increased number of patients who delayed coming to the Emergency Department and are now arriving with more advanced symptoms and conditions which have led to poor outcomes or delays in disease management. With COVID-19 dominating the news, it can be easy to forget that heart attacks, strokes and all kinds of other medical emergencies are still happening every day. And in the case of major strokes or heart attacks, for example, patients need to be treated within a few hours of developing symptoms in order to avoid permanent damage, disability or death. With that in mind, in all of the region’s hospitals, patients are screened upon entry and those presenting with COVID-19 symptoms are rapidly segregated and provided with appropriate protective equipment such as masks. As a result, the risk of contracting the virus through an emergency department visit is minimal. As always, the Renfrew County Virtual Triage and Assessment Centre provides access to health care for residents who have non-life-threatening health issues and do not have a family physician or cannot reach their family physician.
