Patient numbers ease at Children's Hospital, but doctor warns 'we're not out of the woods yet'

A Winnipeg physician says while Health Sciences Centre’s Children’s Hospital remains very busy coping with the ever-hectic cold and flu season, patient volumes have begun to ease.

Doctor Patricia Birk, department head of pediatrics and children’s health at the Children’s Hospital gave an update Tuesday in a virtual news conference.

According to new numbers, there were 17 patients in the pediatric ICU Tuesday morning, down from 23 last week.

The baseline for the pediatric ICU is typically nine staffed beds.

Meantime, there were 47 patients in the neonatal intensive care unit as of Tuesday morning. The normal baseline for that unit is 50 patients.

“Children’s Hospital remains a very busy place, but we are in a much better position than we were a week ago,” Birk said.

This comes after the children’s hospital announced last week it was reassigning staff and postponing all but life-saving surgeries to deal with a spike in critically ill pediatric patients.

READ MORE: HSC Children's Hospital postponing surgeries due to increase in critically ill kids

Birk said they have since re-evaluated to maximize their number of surgical cases and as a result, only one elective procedure was postponed.

“Last week was a worst-case scenario and you see our numbers have dropped this week so that we’re able to maintain our surgeries,” she explained.

Still, the physician said they are not ‘out of the woods yet,’ as respiratory virus season tends to ebb and flow, and influenza B has not yet arrived, which is less contagious but can cause more severe illness.

Another uptick in patient volume is expected in January and February, and Birk said they are preparing to meet the demand.

Additionally, patient numbers in the children’s emergency department are down considerably from the record pace set in November, which doctors say is very similar to trends seen in other pediatrics ERs across the country.

Doctor Karen Gripp, emergency department medical director and section head of pediatric emergency medicine at HSC Children’s Hospital, said so far in December, they are averaging 136 patients a day compared with 170 in November.

“Most pediatric patients are coming in, being treated and then leaving, being discharged from the department. However, the acuity and level of sickness of the children being brought in for care does remain very high,” Gripp said.

She noted nearly half of all patients visiting the department are triaged as high to mid-acuity, including about 52 per cent on Monday. These patients require higher levels of care which impacts wait times, particularly for patients with milder cases.

WARNING AHEAD OF HOLIDAY SEASON

Gripp said the children’s emergency department continues to see COVID-19 cases, but the primary illnesses are still influenza A and RSV-bronchiolitis.

She reminded folks to stay home if they are sick, especially during the busy holiday season.

“We know people want to celebrate, particularly after the past couple of years. But celebrating a holiday with extended family and friends isn’t worth the risk of getting your loved ones sick, particularly if those loved ones include newborns, infants and toddlers,” Gripp said.

Parents or caregivers who might be unsure of where to take their sick or injured child can visit Shared Health’s Kid Care website.