‘Be kind,’ Timmins ER doc says as hospital struggles with surge in patient numbers

ER physicians in Timmins are seeing more people with respiratory viral infections. They said the increase began during the Christmas and New Year holidays.

Emergency department physicians in Timmins are seeing more people with respiratory viral infections. They said the increase began during the Christmas and New Year holidays.

“Influenza A like I’ve never seen it in recent years,” said Dr. Kyle Harper, chief of emergency medical services at Timmins and District Hospital.

“The reason that’s become challenging is a lot of patients coming in with influenza A are actually quite ill and they’re being admitted to the hospital.”

Harper said there are not enough beds to care for all the patients.

More patients than beds

“For example, when I left my shift last night, more than 50 per cent of the beds in the emergency department were occupied by admitted patients,” he said.

“What that means is we now can’t bring in other patients from the waiting room to assess them as quickly as we typically can, and what happens with that is our wait times tend to go up.”

When people have to wait such a long time, Harper said, they get frustrated.

“We get too much yelling and patients picking up the phone and thinking that it’s our fault,” he said.

“I just don’t think it’s fair to the nurses in the ward, clerks and the physicians that are just working so hard … We’re the ones trying to help -- help us help you. That’s all we’re saying, you know. Just be kind.”

If people are unsure whether they should go to the emergency department with flu symptoms, the hospital’s website has a list of alternative options, including after-hours clinics and virtual care options.

“You should not have a fever for longer than five days,” Harper said.

“If you do, you should be seen by a health care practitioner. If you’re having a difficult time breathing at home, if you’re having chest pain, if you’re vomiting, or having so much diarrhea that you feel that you’re dehydrated, that requires an assessment, for sure. And we’re always happy to see patients for that.”

Another piece of advice Harper offered is to remember that influenza A is not a bacterial infection and can’t be treated with antibiotics.