B.C. reopening 20 emergency operations centres as hospitalizations surge

Emergency operations centres being reopened January is usually a busy month in B.C. hospitals – but this January is already shaping up to be worse than most.

The B.C. government is reactivating 20 emergency operations centres across the province in preparation for an expected increase in hospitalizations for COVID-19 and other respiratory illnesses.

Health Minister Adrian Dix said the EOCs, which helped the province through previous waves of COVID-19 infections, will be reopening Monday for a period of at least six weeks.

"January is typically a time when we see an increase in hospitalizations," Dix said at a news conference Friday. "This January is no different. Demand for hospital care in B.C. is high."

The EOCs were activated last January as well, as the health-care system was grappling with an enormous increase in Omicron infections, and again in the fall as cases of influenza and RSV were on the rise.

Officials said there were 10,226 people in the province's acute care beds as of Thursday, filling 88 per cent of the 11,680 available, which includes approximately 2,500 surge beds.

That's up six per cent from the 9,637 beds that were in use as of New Year's Eve.

Apart from the growing number of COVID-19 and flu cases, Dix said there has been an increase in people seeking care since the holidays ended – and the province is expecting hospitals to be under even more pressure over the coming weeks.

He described the reactivation of EOCs as a "proactive step" that will help ensure the public can continue to access care, including non-urgent scheduled surgeries.

The health minister cautioned there would still likely be "some cancellations, as there are at every time of year for different reasons."

The EOCs are expected to help clear space in hospital emergency departments, and allow for easier co-ordination of health-care resources during this period of increased demands on the system.

Dix noted the system has been under various forms of added pressure since the start of the pandemic in 2020, describing the pressure on workers as "unrelenting."

"People have been working like this for years and they need our support," Dix said. "And they'll get it, but it's very, very challenging for them."

Hospitals where emergency operation centres will be established are Abbotsford Regional, Royal Columbian, Surrey Memorial, East Kootenay Regional, Kelowna General, Kootenay Boundary Regional, Penticton Regional, Royal Inland, Vernon Jubilee, Fort St. John & Peace Villa, Mills Memorial, University Hospital of Northern BC, BC Children's, Lions Gate, Richmond, St. Paul's, Vancouver General, Nanaimo Regional General, Royal Jubilee and Victoria General.

With files from The Canadian Press