Staffing shortages continue to wreak havoc at Cambridge Memorial

Cancelled surgeries and “longer than normal” wait times are becoming a recurring theme at Cambridge Memorial Hospital. 

Hospitals are facing staffing crises across Ontario, leading to long wait times in emergency rooms and rescheduled surgeries; Cambridge’s health unit is no exception. 

Stephan Beckhoff, a spokesperson for the hospital has confirmed that another nine surgeries have been cancelled this week after eight were cancelled last week. 

“We made the difficult decision to cancel nine surgeries this week to ease the pressures at our hospital. Emergency surgery and those considered urgent (e.g. cancer) are not cancelled,” said Beckhoff in an emailed response to CambridgeToday. 

As of Wednesday, there were 14 admitted patients waiting in their emergency department and all of their medicine units are full.

This number is slightly higher than the 13 patients the hospital had waiting this time last week. 

The current wait time clock that is provided on the CMH website is stated as being inaccurate and wait times are much longer than posted, said the hospital on the page.

On the information page it says 48 people are in triage, waiting to be admitted. Patient count is also said to be higher than posted. 

Beckhoff encourages people looking for health care services to consider alternative providers such as; family doctors, walk-in clinics, virtual clinics and even the COVID Assessment Centre for COVID symptoms

“We also want to reassure people that if the emergency department remains their only option, they will be seen in priority order,” said Beckhoff.