Nurses and other hospital/medical workers are at high risk at all times.
Posted on 05/31/2003 3:21:42 AM PDT by Lorenb420
Medical officials want Torontonians to stay out of hospitals -- especially emergency rooms -- with word SARS claimed its 30th victim. The plea from Dr. James Young, Ontario's commissioner of public safety and security, is the latest move in the fight to quash Toronto's second SARS outbreak and to provide some relief to exhausted and overworked health-care workers.
"This is a nervous weekend for us," Young said.
It came on the day the 30th SARS victim died, and the number of probable cases jumped substantially to 42 from 29, while another 13 people are considered suspect cases.
Officials are attempting to switch four GTA hospitals into SARS hospitals, while at the same time continuing to see and investigate new cases of the virus. This is all happening while hospital staffs have been decimated by SARS.
There are 444 health-care workers in quarantine and dozens more in working quarantine.
"Hospitals are overburdened right now and they ask that the emergs be as quiet as they can be," Young said.
If people are sick, doctors are asking that they call TeleHealth Ontario first at 1-866-797-0000, before going to the hospital.
Young also asked visitors to try to stay away or at least keep visits to a minimum because they strain hospital resources and increase the risk within the health-care system.
There are 149 cases under investigation and 7,860 people in quarantine.
The latest death is a 57-year-old patient from St. John's Rehabilitation Centre who contracted SARS at North York General Hospital in the second outbreak. His case of SARS "sparked greater interest in the cluster" health officials are now fighting to contain, said Dr. Colin D'Cunha.
Another two Section 22 orders forcing people into quarantine were issued, bringing the total to four for this outbreak.
Young called the second outbreak a "tremendous disappointment," but said the province does know how to fight it.
"It's one of those viruses that even when you gain control it takes one case to start it back up," Young said. "It does extremely well in hospital settings."
SARS 2, as it is being called, started on the fourth floor at North York General in a 96-year-old who was misdiagnosed.
Young said the second outbreak is causing strain on the entire health-care system, public health workers and paramedics.
The health-care system has been slowed down by SARS, Young said. Putting on two layers of protective gowns, gloves and masks, isolating anyone with minimal symptoms to ensure they don't have SARS is taking a toll.
This weekend officials will continue their efforts to turn four hospitals, including William Osler's Etobicoke site, North York General, St. Michael's and Scarborough General, into SARS treatment hospitals.
"There's work to be done in those hospitals," Young said.
D'Cunha, Ontario's chief medical officer of health, said this outbreak is bad, but added the reminder that during the first outbreak there were 3,000 people under investigation for SARS. This time there are 149.
Young had one final request for anyone who is SARS-free: "Hug a health-care worker."
There are 444 health-care workers in quarantine and dozens more in working quarantine.
Terrible, the health care workers are under a great burden. These doctors and nurses are taking every precaution, yet this is such an infectious disease. God help them.
Nice sentiment, but random huggings of those most likely to be infected is poor epidemiology.
I feel very sympathetic toward them.
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