York Region hospitals ask for public’s help as surging COVID-19 cases put region at ‘tipping point’

York Region residents received a stark warning this afternoon: the region’s three local hospitals have reached a ‘tipping point’ in the battle against COVID-19.

CEOs from Mackenzie Health, Markham Stouffville and Southlake Regional hospitals sent out a joint statement Dec. 8 raising the alarm over significant increases in the number of patients being admitted for COVID-19.

“We are concerned about how this may impact access to care like scheduled surgeries for all patients across our communities,” the statement said.

The CEOs are calling on the entire community to step up to slow the spread.

“Our staff, physicians and volunteers are doing everything they can to continue providing exemplary care to patients and their families, but the mounting pressure from COVID-19 is taking a toll.”

York Region has consistently ranked among the four worst-hit regions in the province, but when Toronto and Peel were put in the strictest “Grey Zone” Nov. 23.

The region instead asked to stick with “Red-Zone-Plus” restrictions and of COVID-19 precautions.

Numbers have continued to rise to record levels. Public health reported 193 new confirmed cases and four additional fatalities Dec. 8 and the hospital administrators say the region is precariously close to lockdown, too.

“Social gatherings and close social interactions with people outside of our household will push us over the edge,” Jo-anne Marr, president and CEO of Markham Stouffville Hospital, warned in a Toronto Star guest column. “It will continue to force the closure of businesses and schools and it is putting an incredible burden on health-care services and providers.”

The joint statement, signed by Marr, Altaf Stationwala, president and CEO of Mackenzie Health, and Arden Krystal, president and CEO of Southlake, said that more than ever, they are relying on communities to be vigilant in following public health guidance — always wearing a mask in public when distancing isn’t possible, and avoiding social gatherings.

“We recognize that avoiding social gatherings, especially during the holidays, is a personal sacrifice, but we need to do whatever we can to help protect our entire community and maintain access to our health care services,” the statement said.

Words of encouragement, cards, posters, donations and drive-bys, have “meant the world” to health care workers, the CEOs said.

“We are counting on our communities to help keep our staff, physicians and volunteers safe so they can continue to care for everyone who relies on us for care, for COVID-related illness as well as non-COVID-related illnesses and emergencies.”

At Southlake, 79-per-cent of the hospital’s critical care beds were occupied as of Dec. 7.

Wearing masks, washing hands and physical distancing will help to avoid cancelling surgical procedures during a time when Southlake’s capacity is already a challenge, hospital spokesperson Kathryn Perrier said.

Mackenzie Health’s critical care capacity is at 87-per-cent full, a hospital spokesperson said in an email.

“It’s important to note that the increased overall COVID-19 burden in our hospital impacts more than our critical care capacity. It also has an effect on our ability to perform scheduled procedures and surgeries and our ability to provide the level of care we want to continue providing to our community.”

It’s not just the number of patients requiring hospitalization that hospitals are concerned about, but the number of cases circulating in the community, Dr. Karim Kurji, York Region’s medical officer of health, said.

Kurji said he works closely with the three hospital presidents and they suggested this joint statement as another strategy to try to get the message out to the public.

“By and large, the public has been quite compliant, but the numbers were still going up,” he said.

Numbers peaked about three days ago and this is having an impact on hospitals, with more patients requiring care, more in ICU (not all patients from York Region), and more health-care staff members contracting the virus, too.

Kurji said hospital capacity is of paramount importance when it comes to whether or not the province puts the region into lockdown.

Like many institutions, health-care workers in hospitals — and paramedics in particular — are catching COVID-19 in the community, he said.

As the number of cases in the community continues to rise, so does the risk of health-care providers or their family members getting sick, requiring isolation, and reducing the number of paramedics and health care workers available to help out.

This leads to further strain on the health-care system, he said.

York Region released the latest tally of charges in its ongoing COVID-19 enforcement campaign late Tuesday, announcing 61 charges were laid against residents and businesses between Nov. 20 and Dec. 6 — 18 issued by public health, two by the Town of Aurora, 11 by the City of Markham and 30 by the City of Vaughan.

Kurji recommended to York Region council last month that increased enforcement and education could help the region put off a lockdown by the province, but he said it’s not likely to avoid it altogether.

“I have been trying to buy some time, because I felt that the steps being taken would result in reduced numbers of cases,” he said “These are very difficult decisions and right now, we have everything very much in the balance in terms of the province probably recommending intervention.

“Our numbers will be the ultimate decider. If our numbers keep going down over the next few days, it might buy us a bit more time, but I think our latitude for asking for more time is diminishing by the day.”

In the meantime, and until vaccines arrive, Kurji said it’s extremely important to push case numbers down to reduce the impact on hospitals and COVID-19 deaths.