KHSC responds to provincial government lockdown measures

On Wednesday, Dec. 23, 2020, Kingston Health Sciences Centre (KHSC) released a statement in response to the provincial government lockdown measures which go into effect on Saturday, Dec. 26, 2020.

“We welcome the measures government is taking in an effort to curb the spread of COVID-19 and prevent hospitals from being increasingly overwhelmed in the coming weeks,” Dr. David Pichora, president and CEO, Kingston Health Sciences Centre, said in the statement.

“At this time, we have not received a provincial directive to reduce our non-emergency surgical activity and clinic work. We will continue to monitor the situation daily, as we have been for the past many months, and adjust our activity as needed based on the prevalence of COVID-19 in our communities, supplies, bed capacity and staffing,” Dr. Pichora continued.

KHSC went on to say their priority remains providing acute care and critical care, and they say they will provide as much non-emergency care for as long as they can do so safely for patients and staff. The hospital sites are safe places in which to receive care, and KHSC says patients should not hesitate to come to the hospital for the care they need.

Dr. Pichora thanked patients and families for their patience and cooperation in working with KHSC when they need to make changes to schedules to care for the most vulnerable.

Should surgeries and other appointments need to be rescheduled, KHSC says patients will be notified by phone by their surgeon’s or specialist’s office. As always, patients who have questions or concerns about their care should contact a member of their care team directly.

The hospital remains on restricted access, according to the statement. Limits to family presence are the same; inpatients staying in hospital are permitted only one registered essential family member, and outpatients should be prepared to attend alone. Details about visitor access is available at KingstonHSC.ca/COVID19. KHSC is also asking the public not to deliver gifts for inpatients.

“We continue to follow provincial guidelines and have a plan in place to make up to 15 per cent of our bed capacity available within hours to respond to a surge in patients needing care related to COVID-19,” Dr. Pichora said in the statement.

“We know lockdown measures are difficult, but please follow public health guidance – including limiting your contacts to those within your household – in order to protect your loved ones, your communities, and health-care workers,” he said. “Our helpful actions now will benefit us greatly in the weeks to come.”