The Hawkesbury and District General Hospital (HGH) is facing an acute staffing shortage related to the rapid spread of the Omicron variant, which has management considering overnight closures of the emergency department.
In a memo to hospital staff obtained by Radio-Canada, management urged all “off-duty personnel” to take on additional shifts, particularly nurses but also porters, housekeeping and food services staff.
HGH declared a COVID-19 outbreak in one of its in-patient units Tuesday.
Dr. Paul Roumeliotis, medical officer of health for the Eastern Ontario Health Unit, said the outbreak is an additional stress at a facility already facing absenteeism.
But he said the region hasn’t reached the point of allowing some infected health-care workers to stay on the job to keep hospitals open.
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