The current wave of COVID-19, fueled by the Omicron variant, seems to be receding in Quebec, even if the situation in hospitals has not really improved yet.
The weekend was shaping up to be “the worst since the start of the pandemic”, according to Prime Minister François Legault. Finally, “in intensive care, it is not the slaughter that we had planned”, indicates the Dr Germain Poirier, president of the Society of Intensivists of Quebec.
“We have not fallen into the worst scenario. Currently, it looks quite viable and livable, but the room for maneuver is not extraordinary, ”he confides to the Duty.
Occupancy rates in Quebec’s emergency rooms averaged around 90% this weekend.
According to data released by the Ministry of Health on Sunday, the number of patients admitted to hospitals due to COVID-19 rose from 3,195 to 3,300. Hospital centers admitted 392 new patients and discharged 302 others. There were 282 people in intensive care, 7 more than the day before.
No less than 5,946 new cases of Quebecers infected with COVID-19 have been identified since the previous report. The day before, there were 6,705. Although the number of new cases is not representative of the situation since access to screening centers is restricted to priority clienteles, it remains that a certain downward trend has been observed. over the past few days.
Health restrictions are thus proving to be life-saving for hospitals, confirms the Dr Pear tree. “A bit like for the first waves, when there was confinement and a curfew, people go to the emergency room less when they know that there may be a slaughter. They don’t want to be infected either. »
Fewer people are coming to the emergency room than expected, but they are staying there longer. The floors are already full of patients positive for COVID-19, and nearly 10% of the available beds are closed in Quebec. “It’s a big mishmash of bed management. That’s a bit of the problem, ”notes the Dr Germain Poirier, also head of intensive care at Charles-Lemoyne Hospital.
“Less virulent”
The immunity acquired by vaccination and the reduced aggressiveness of the current variant also give caregivers some respite. “Omicron is less virulent. We see it in intensive care, we see it on the floors, ”underlines the Dr Germain Poirier.
The percentage of Quebecers aged 5 and over who received a first dose is around 90%. Approximately 82% of the Quebec population received a second dose and nearly 32% received a booster dose. No less than 81,564 doses of vaccine were administered last Saturday, including 71,724 booster doses and 6,241 first doses.
Faced with these findings, the Dr Poirier pleads for a review of the management of patients with COVID-19, in particular those who present to the hospital for other health problems. “We are trying to see, among others with the Federation of Medical Specialists of Quebec, if we can lighten certain measures and review our ways of doing things to precisely ensure that we can free up beds more easily. See if we can stop testing everyone and maybe treat it like seasonal flu. »
On Sunday, 21 deaths were added to the death toll. We now deplore 12,310 deaths linked to COVID-19 since its appearance in Quebec.
With The Canadian Press