The reductions announced Tuesday by Quebec are greeted with caution in the health network. Because even if we recognize that the population needs to breathe and that hospitalizations are down, the situation remains very tense in many hospitals.
Posted at 5:00 a.m.
“We live in two worlds. In hospitals, the situation has stopped getting worse. But it’s not better. On the other hand, the population is tired and needs relief”, notes the Dr Gilbert Boucher, President of the Association of Emergency Medicine Specialists of Quebec (ASMUQ).
“It’s as if the government is an arbiter between the economy and health. There are two opposing visions. But things are not going any better in the health network. Far from it, ”says the president of the Federation of Health and Social Services (FSSS-CSN), Réjean Leclerc.
Roxane Borgès Da Silva, professor at the School of Public Health at the University of Montreal, believes that the government’s position is not really simple at the moment.
Yes, the situation in hospitals remains difficult. But pandemic fatigue is also reaching a point of no return.
Roxane Borgès Da Silva, professor at the School of Public Health at the University of Montreal
In announcing his series of relaxations on Tuesday, Prime Minister François Legault acknowledged that hospital capacity remained “limited” in Quebec and that 12,000 workers were still absent, which forces the government to be “prudent” in its reductions.
On Monday, Quebec had 3,278 patients hospitalized with COVID-19, a number that is decreasing, but “not fast,” said Mr. Legault. And projections for the next few weeks predict a drop in hospitalizations, but remain “unstable”.
The acting national director of public health, Dr.r Luc Boileau, recognizes that the situation in hospitals is “fragile”. But for him, “you have to give a space to allow people to live differently […] while being cautious. “Do we have to wait until it’s completely restored to give space? I think not,” he said. The Dr Boileau believes that the calculation has been “well done” between the risk for hospitals and the “need for people to socialize”.
“A balancing act”
On the ground, the concerns are palpable. “What do we do if the cases go up [plus], because the health system is already at full capacity? “, asked on Twitter Tuesday noon the intensivist Amélie Boisclair. She acknowledged that deciding whether or not to ease health measures was “a balancing act”. But she pointed out that the health system is “cracking everywhere”. The DD Boisclair says he does not want the containment to be maintained, but “a safe deconfinement plan because the hospitals are no less under tension than a week ago”.
“There is still a lot of mandatory overtime. The healthcare system is still messed up. We are still in shedding up to our necks, ”confirms the Dr Butcher.
The latter nevertheless believes that “we cannot wait for hospitals to return to normal in three to six months to ease” the containment measures. Mr. Leclerc agrees. Because according to him, the situation could very well remain difficult for several more months in hospitals.
In the opinion of D.r Boucher, however, it will be essential to observe the impact of the opening of schools, in force for a week, on the number of outbreaks in Quebec before going even further in the relaxations.
If we note an increase, it will be difficult in hospitals. But if the outbreaks are well controlled, that will allow us to deconfine a little more.
The Dr Gilbert Boucher, President of the Association of Emergency Medicine Specialists of Quebec
The DD Judy Morris, president of the Association of Emergency Physicians of Quebec, notes that many workers are absent these days because their children have COVID-19. The DD Morris also believes that the situation will have to be monitored closely. “We probably got there, to lighten up. But there are no tests. The government has announced a new system to track cases [une plateforme d’autodéclaration de tests mise en ligne mardi matin]. Will we get there? It’s a question I have, ”she said.