Perth hospital emergency department closing due to COVID-19 outbreak
The emergency department at the Perth hospital will be closed for five days due to a staffing shortage.
The Perth and Smiths Falls District Hospital says the emergency department will be closed from 7 a.m. on Saturday until Thursday, July 7 following a COVID-19 outbreak impacting staff in the department.
"In spite of our best efforts to preserve care in the Perth Emergency Department, COVID-19 has placed yet another burden on our fragile staffing situation," the hospital said in a statement.
"Today we learned of a COVID-19 outbreak impacting our Emergency Department Staff. This left the PSFDH team with no other option but to close the Perth Emergency Department effective Saturday, July 2 at 7 a.m."
Available staff from the emergency department at the Perth Hospital will be transferred to the Smiths Falls hospital emergency department to support the anticipated increase in patients.
"The PSFDH team had a plan in place to continue services to the community but due to the terrible pandemic, PSFDH is no longer able to safely operate our Perth Emergency Department," said Michael Cohen, president and CEO of the Perth and Smiths Falls District Hospital. "This decision is the result of the unprecedented times and not a decision that has been taken lightly. Patient care and staff and physician safety remain the top priorities."
The emergency department will remain closed until July 7. The hospital says as the "staffing situation stabilizes", the emergency department in Perth will be open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.
The announcement of the closure of the emergency department at the Perth hospital comes one day after the hospital insisted nightly closures would not happen. News circulated on Tuesday that the emergency department at the Perth hospital would be closed from July to September between 11 p.m. and 7 a.m.
On Wednesday, the Perth and Smiths Falls District Hospital announced the hospital decided there would be "no closure of departments/services at this time."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'One of the single most terrifying things ever': Ontario couple among passengers on sinking tour boat in Dominican Republic
A Toronto couple are speaking out about their 'extremely dangerous' experience on board a sinking tour boat in the Dominican Republic last week.
Half of Canadians have negative opinion of latest Liberal budget: poll
A new poll suggests the Liberals have not won over voters with their latest budget, though there is broad support for their plan to build millions of homes.
opinion Why you should protect your investments by naming a trusted contact person
Appointing a trusted person to help with financial obligations can give you peace of mind. In his personal finance column for CTVNews.ca, Christopher Liew outlines the key benefits of naming a confidant to take over your financial responsibilities, if the need ever arises.
Teacher shortages see some Ontario high school students awarded perfect grades on midterm exams
Students at a high school in York Region have been awarded perfect marks on their midterm exams in three subjects – not because of their academic performances however, but because they had no teacher.
'My stomach dropped': Winnipeg man speaks out after being criminally harassed following single online date
A Winnipeg man said a single date gone wrong led to years of criminal harassment, false arrests, stress and depression.
Doctors combine a pig kidney transplant and a heart device in a bid to extend woman's life
Doctors have transplanted a pig kidney into a New Jersey woman who was near death, part of a dramatic pair of surgeries that also stabilized her failing heart.
Photographer alleges he was forced to watch Megan Thee Stallion have sex and was unfairly fired
A photographer who worked for Megan Thee Stallion said in a lawsuit filed Tuesday that he was forced to watch her have sex, was unfairly fired soon after and was abused as her employee.
Ottawa injects another $36M into vaccine injury compensation fund
The federal government has added $36.4 million to a program designed to support people who have been seriously injured or killed by vaccines since the end of 2020.
An Ontario senior thought he called Geek Squad for help with his printer. Instead, he got scammed out of $25,000
An Ontario senior’s attempt to get technical help online led him into a spoofing scam where he lost $25,000. Now, he’s sharing his story to warn others.