August 27, 2021
EDMONTON — With the rise in COVID-19 cases in the community and the increasing demand on hospital resources, Alberta Health Services (AHS) is taking steps to create additional acute and ICU capacity.
This will result in the postponement of some non-urgent surgeries and procedures to ensure we have the beds and staff required to take care of all patients needing hospital care, including those with COVID-19 as well as other Albertans who are sick or injured.
This proactive approach mirrors similar surgical reductions during previous waves. AHS will maintain emergent, urgent procedures, as well as prioritized cancer surgeries.
These measures will help free up space in our hospitals for patients who need a higher level of care, and allow us to redeploy frontline staff and resources to areas of greatest need.
Any patient whose surgery or procedure is being postponed due to this temporary reduction will be contacted directly by AHS. To date, service adjustments are being planned in two zones.
In the North Zone, approximately 45 elective surgical procedures per week at the Queen Elizabeth II Hospital in Grande Prairie will be postponed starting August 30. This will allow the site to increase bed capacity and create a dedicated COVID-19 unit.
In the Edmonton zone, up to 30 per cent of non-urgent surgeries and procedures will be postponed starting August 30.
AHS is currently working through the province’s surgical backlog brought on by the pandemic. For the last two months we have been operating at 100 per cent of pre-COVID-19 surgical levels, and have been performing more non-urgent scheduled surgeries.
All backlogged surgeries in wave one have been rebooked and 96 per cent of all delayed surgeries from wave one, two and three have been completed.
We strongly urge all eligible Albertans to get immunized as quickly as possible, and to continue following preventative measures such as staying home when sick.
Alberta Health Services is the provincial health authority responsible for planning and delivering health supports and services for more than four million adults and children living in Alberta. Its mission is to provide a patient-focused, quality health system that is accessible and sustainable for all Albertans.
