The scenes unfolding inside the intensive care unit at Scarborough General Hospital can be tough to watch as nearly every bed is now taken.
Life here is incredibly fragile, even for the vaccinated.
Dr. Martin Betts is the medical director of critical care for the Scarborough health network.
He says: “It’s a real challenge to be able to describe what you just saw, and it was difficult to be able to appreciate. Really the severity of the illnesses is people suffering from and the intensity of the interventions.”
It’s a scene that’s playing out in ICUs across the country, exhausted and short staff.
Health care workers are struggling to save every life they possibly can. That says none of the patients here have had third doses, and roughly seventy five percent are unvaccinated.
Dr. Martin Betts says: “One disturbing trend that we’ve seen is relatively elderly patients that may be in the community, getting advice from their kids and middle age, where they may have strong views against a vaccine for themselves. But I think the risk equation for their elderly parent is actually different.”
On top of that, some hospitals are now running out of potentially lifesaving drugs for Covid patients, forcing doctors here to use a lottery system.
Dr. Martin Betts says: “When you have six patients that need a life saving medication, and you have to choose one or two. That’s a huge burden to carry. And this takes some of that away and make sure it’s a fair system.”
Pharmacist Mina Tadros says: “It’s an ethical scenario. Like perhaps lotteries are probably the only fair way, instead of picking who might survive.”
Hospitals have been sharing supplies of two arthritis drugs. In particular, pharmacists say those medications have been shown to save about one in every twenty patients by reducing inflammation.
Mina Tadros says: “Toclosumab was the primary choice. It’s the one with the best evidence. As it shortages ran low, we started using the other drug, and then that impacted it supply because it wasn’t ready for that increase in demand either.”
While hunting for new medications, health care workers are routinely turning Covid patients face down.
Labor intensive, but it can help lung function.
Finally, CBC news reporter said in the interview: “I ask health care workers about their biggest fear and greatest hope at this point. Their biggest fear is that another variant is coming, but their greatest hope is that we are at, or very close to the peak in this wave. Every health care worker I spoke with inside that ICU said, they are giving their patients everything they have left. They’re doing their best to take care of people. And they hope all canadians will do the same.”
Resource: CBC News