Medical doctors need the Alberta authorities to declare a state of emergency for hospitals throughout the province, as extra folks come ahead with tales of practically dying whereas ready to be seen.
“It’s very troublesome to ship protected and well timed care in all of our emergency departments and hospitals throughout the province proper now,” stated Paul Parks, president-elect of the emergency physicians’ part of the Alberta Medical Affiliation.
He spoke out on behalf of tons of of emergency and inner medication medical doctors throughout the province.
Physicians are utilizing regarding language, saying they’ve by no means seen Alberta’s emergency departments as overwhelmed as they’ve been this winter.
“This isn’t simply Dr. Paul Park saying the sky is falling,” he stated.
“That is really a plea for assist to our authorities from our front-line health-care staff in our hospitals, saying it’s getting inconceivable to ship security and well timed care to all of sufferers and we want assist — we want a provincial response.”
Lengthy wait instances within the E.R., code reds when there aren’t any ambulances accessible, prolonged waits for surgical procedures and assessments, conditions the place 4 individuals are put in hospital rooms designed for 2, and extra sick sufferers than beds to place them in is, sadly, nothing new in Alberta — it’s been a rising problem for over a decade.
Parks stated the rising inhabitants is just exacerbating the strain.
On the identical time, the province has spent current years dismantling the province-wide, all-encompassing Alberta Well being Companies supplier into 4 completely different companies — which Parks stated hasn’t helped.
“For months and months, we’ve been pleading for assist. And for the final three years, it’s been fixed reorganization, fixed chaos.”
Parks says the scenario at hospitals is dire and it’s not simply in emergency rooms — there simply isn’t the house to securely look after folks in all areas.
“All of those stressors and all of this chaos is now resulting in the place we’re listening to about sufferers dying in our ready rooms — and it’s not only one case that makes it public, it’s many,” Parks stated.
Parks’ plea comes after an Edmonton father died simply earlier than Christmas within the Gray Nuns Hospital emergency room, the place he waited for eight hours and by no means noticed a health care provider.
Prashant Sreekumar, 44, went to the south Edmonton hospital with chest pains and died of obvious cardiac arrest whereas ready for care.
Different Albertans are coming ahead with related tales.
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On Dec. 20, 2025 — two days earlier than Sreekumar died — retired nurse Kelly Marlow was taken to Gray Nuns in an ambulance with related signs.
She was throwing up, had chest pains, numb arms and has a historical past of coronary heart issues. She stated it isn’t the primary time she’s had a sudden-onset hypertensive disaster.
“I’ve passed by EMS to the hospital twice for this,” she stated, including these instances she was triaged to be seen rapidly.
This time — not a lot.
Marlow stated she waited seven hours earlier than being seen by a health care provider. She was left alone in a wheelchair within the ready room, she stated, as a result of her paramedics stated they have been being despatched again out to a distinct name.
“I communicated to the nurses that I actually did assume I used to be dying. I used to be having chest pains. My imaginative and prescient wasn’t nice, I couldn’t really feel my arms, I knew my blood strain was nonetheless severely excessive. I couldn’t cease throwing up.”
Marlow knew from her 33 years {of professional} expertise as a nurse that one thing was incorrect.
“I used to be alone, I used to be scared, I did fear that I used to be going to die there within the E.R. that evening.”
Ultimately, she was in a position to get a nurse’s consideration and issues progressed.
“At that time she did verify my blood strain once more and was fairly alarmed — and I used to be in, inside a couple of minutes from that point.”
Marlow was later advised by her heart specialist she doubtless solely survived as a result of her coronary heart is powerful — however subsequent time she will not be as fortunate.
“Actually, it was in all probability one of many worse nights of my life.”
Day by day throughout Alberta, Parks stated there’s tons of of sick or injured folks sitting in ache in ready rooms or laying on stretchers in hospital hallways, ready their flip for desperately-needed care.
“There’s a number of sufferers which are struggling for 10, 12, 14 hours with extreme ache that we are able to’t get ache meds or consolation to. It’s day in, time out in each one among our emergency departments.
“So what we’re pleading for is: simply acknowledge that this can be a provincial disaster.”
Parks stated with AHS now splintered off into 4 completely different companies — Acute Care Alberta (hospitals, surgical procedures), Major Care Alberta (day-to-day well being), Restoration Alberta (psychological well being/habit), and Assisted Dwelling Alberta (long-term care/help) — there are extra authorities ministers, CEOs, directors and bureaucrats within the combine.
That’s left medical doctors, nurses, EMS and others on the entrance strains uncertain who it really in cost throughout a well being disaster.
“Proper now, what I’m listening to time and again from my front-line colleagues and my front-line leaders, is that they haven’t any clue who’s operating this, who’s coordinating this, or methods to navigate our disintegrated system proper now. And they also’re simply pleading for assist: please, assist the frontline health-care staff do their job,” Parks stated.
“Who is definitely accountable to steer our province-wide response to it? We don’t have a clue.”
Parks says there must be a plan for short-, medium- and long-term options and it must occur now.
“Nobody hospital can dig their manner out of this. Nobody hall can dig their manner out this. We’d like a provincial response.”
Parks stated the province’s announcement of extra hospital beds will assist – ultimately. Hospital areas are advanced to construct and received’t come on-line for the higher a part of a decade.
He stated Alberta can’t wait and assist is required now.
“Let’s work collectively on provincial options that we all know we are able to implement,” he stated. “Let’s not maintain quibbling about how dangerous the disaster is.”
In a press release Thursday, the province thanked medical doctors for his or her enter. It additionally acknowledged lengthy emergency division wait instances stay a severe concern.
The federal government stated respiratory virus and flu season has led to extra sufferers in hospitals, however employees have made adjustments to assist.
“An early and unusually giant flu spike in mid-December added strain to hospitals with extra sufferers requiring care and hospitalization that we’re at the moment seeing,” stated a press release from the Ministry of Hospital and Surgical Well being Companies.
“We’re cautiously optimistic that demand could ease as instances locally stabilize particularly in Calgary and Edmonton, however hospitals will stay busy all through the season.”
The ministry stated adjustments are being carried out reminiscent of:
- Accelerating discharges and transfers the place acceptable
- Limiting non-essential inbound transfers
- Dedicating 336 beds particularly for respiratory virus season
- Opening designated surge areas to handle elevated demand
- Transitioning sufferers who now not require acute care out of hospital into the neighborhood
The province says these efforts are working and circumstances ought to enhance extra as soon as the flu season winds down.
Parks stated the province wants a actuality verify to how dangerous it’s on the bottom.
“If the ministers and the premier and their PR groups wish to say, ‘Oh, it’s not so dangerous. It’s just a bit little bit of influenza and we’ll get higher.’ That’s completely not true.
“What is going to it take for them to acknowledge the state we’re in? Do they want increasingly publicized tragic deaths?”
Late Thursday afternoon, the Alberta authorities issued an up to date assertion:
“The system is utilizing all accessible assets; requires a ‘public well being state of emergency’ are misguided and would add nothing to what’s already being accomplished. Comparisons to the pandemic emergency of 2020 will not be primarily based on proof.”
