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Dryden Hospital

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Return To Service Not Return To “Normal”

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The Dryden Regional Health Centre is returning to the resumption of some services but stress it’s not a return to normal.

The hospital has made some changes to the way people will be accessing services at the facility, stressing the health and safety of patients and staff remain their top priority.

You will notice a different way of doing things when it comes to booking, registration, attendance, and admission.

When you come in for care:

-You will be screened on entrance to the building.
-Masks must be worn at all times. Patients and visitors are encouraged to bring their own mask when possible.
-You will be expected to practice frequent handwashing.
-You must respect and follow recommendations for physical distancing.
-You will be required to limit your movement within the organization by entering and leaving the facility through the doors closest to the service you are accessing.
-You must respect and follow visitor restrictions.
-Depending on the service you are accessing, you may need to be tested for COVID-19.
-Instructions will be provided when procedures are booked.
-Cafeteria services are currently unavailable to visitors and patients.
-Individuals who have questions about their upcoming appointments are encouraged to call the appropriate department for clarification and information.

If you have questions about an upcoming appointment you are encouraged to call the appropriate department for clarification and information.

The hospital is thanking the public for their understanding and patience during the pandemic.

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Funding Boost Announced For Dryden Hospital

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The Dryden Regional Health Centre will be seeing over $380,000 in additional funding from the provincial government.

The amount is specifically $381,300 and represents a 1.9% increase in annual funding for the hospital.

Kenora-Rainy River MPP Greg Rickford made the announcement this afternoon at the hospital and says there will not only be a surge of operations in the near future, but the funding will also help as the hospital will have to function in a different way for the time being.

Rickford also says this funding is important, especially for small and medium sized hospitals which face long-standing funding inequities.

He also goes on to say the people of Dryden will benefit in the years to come through this investment in our hospital.

Dryden Regional Health Centre Chief Executive Officer Doreen Armstrong-Ross says the funding is more than important as they have incurred extra expenses to not only prepare for COVID-19, but also with the ongoing services being offered.

Armstrong-Ross also says the financial impact of COVID-19 is yet to be fully realized and our hospitals are likely to be stressed and stretched financially in the days and perhaps years to come.

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Dryden Rotary Steps Up To Help Still Me

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The Dragon Boats won’t be racing on the Wabigoon River this year but the generosity of the community never ends.

Dryden Rotary has made a $5,000 donation on behalf of the Kinsmen Club for the Still Me program at the Dryden Regional Health Centre.

Rotary member Mardi Plomp says it’s important to keep the fundraising for the critical cancer care program going.

“Alvin Saville who founded the Dragon Boat idea because his daughter Margaret had cancer 15 years ago. We thank him very much for the great idea and all the money that has been raised so far for the hospital.”

Plomp says the $5,000 is in memory of Margaret, who was a Rotary member and passed on from cancer.

The races have been a Canada Day tradition for the past 15 years but won’t be held this year because of COVID-19 restrictions.

Plomp says “We’re hoping that the other businesses and groups that have always taken part in the Dragon Boats and the people that have come to enjoy and watch the race would think of giving towards this so special cause.”

Dryden Kinsmen member Brad Coles says “Due to the situation that we are in with COVID we had to cancel it. And we we’re kind of concerned on how we would fund the program. Rotary has come through to at least give us some money towards the Still Me to keep it going for this year.”

Coles adds “Anybody who can contribute or can help out. That’s the people that have helped us out throughout the last 15 years doing the event. If it wasn’t for the sponsors, the teams, the participants and the people behind the scenes, we wouldn’t be able to put on the event.”

Timbermax, a regular participant on race day, has made a $1,000 donation.

Still Me was created from the concept that if a person living with cancer can be helped to look good, their improved self image will help them to approach cancer and it’s treatment with greater confidence.

To hear more from Mardi Plomp and Brad Coles, visit the Audio link below.

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Audio: Visitor Restrictions Still In Place At Hospital

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Certain surgeries and services resume this week at the Dryden Regional Health Centre.

However, Chief Executive Officer Doreen Armstrong-Ross cautions this is only Phase 1 of their reopening plan and visitor restrictions remain in place.

“The Ontario Hospital Association is wanting all hospitals to do that in a very structured manner and there is some guidelines and guidance that will be coming out in that way.”

Armstrong-Ross stresses they are ready to go as soon as the green light is given.

“We’re ready! We’ve actually already got our policy and procedure in place for when we we’re given the go ahead to open up for visitors. I understand it’s very frustrating and difficult.”

She adds “It’s quite heart wrenching to not be able to see people in here but it is structured. There’s a lot to think about with that. But definitely it’s on our plan and we are ready for when we are able to go ahead and do that.”

Armstrong-Ross says 25% of their services resume this week and they hope to hit 50%-75% later this summer.

To hear more about Phase 1 of Hospital Service Recovery Plan, visit the Audio link below.

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Spring Clean-Up At Dryden Hospital

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It’s spring cleaning time at the Dryden Regional Health Centre.

Contractors will be on-site Friday and Saturday to clean the parking lot of sand and debris.

The public will still be able to access the parking lot as the cleaning is being done in rotations with minimal impact.

The hospital warns people in the area that they may experience extra dust.

SPRING CLEAN-UP RELEASE

We wish to provide notice that contractors will be on-site at the Dryden Regional Health Centre May 15-16, 2020 to clean the parking lots of sand and debris left from the winter.

We understand that the dust and dirt kicked up during the spring clean-up of our lots is concerning. This is a most unwelcome consequence to our efforts to keep the lot safe from slips and falls,
avoid the tracking of dirt into our health centre, and to keep our grounds clean. Salt, sand, gravel, dirt, trash, and other debris may collect on surface parking lots and can pose a hazard to vehicles and
pedestrians.

It’s important to us to be good neighbours and while providing high quality care for those requiring medical attention is our primary goal and focus, keeping our properties looking good and functioning well is part of our commitment to the community.

We appreciate your patience and understanding.

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Dryden Hospital Planning For Resumption Of Surgeries

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There is no set timeline for the Dryden Regional Health Centre to resume scheduled surgeries.

The Ontario government is allowing hospitals to start preparing for the resumption of surgeries and procedures.

DRHC Chief Executive Officer Doreen Armstrong-Ross says a lot preparation is needed.

Armstrong-Ross says there are strict and comprehensive provincial guidelines and checklists that must be met before they can re-start.

That includes having a stable supply of personal protection equipment.

The hospital must ensure the safety and security of all staff and patients including physical distancing.

The facility must also have a safe transition plan for the discharge of patients.

Another measure is maintaining no more than 85% capacity.

Armstrong-Ross says “We are a 42 bed facility. So we can’t have more than 35 patients in, including the surgeries, to leave that bed capacity for any additional COVID patients that may come in.”

She stresses the re-start will be a coordinated effort with their regional partners.

“Other than our two surgeons that live in Dryden, our general surgeons, most of our surgeons come from other communities and of course their working on the same processes in their home hospitals. So it’s going to be a very coordinated, measured, thoughtful approach.”

Armstrong-Ross says she doesn’t anticipate any delay, noting visiting specialists are booked one year in advance.

She adds the hospital has an extensive waiting list for surgeries right now.

“Looking at our waiting lists for our other departments. Obviously our waiting lists for rehab, diagnostic imaging, different tests that were non-essential are piling up. And then using a real ethical framework, prioritize what’s going to be done as we ramp up services again.”

A multi-disciplinary committee in place to help guide the hospital through the process over the next couple of weeks.

Armstrong-Ross say they hope to resume surgeries sooner rather than later because the community has done a great job to flatten the COVID-19 curve.

To hear more from Doreen Armstrong-Ross, visit the Audio link below.

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Audio: Dr. Cook Comments On PPE And Testing

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The Chief of Staff at the Dryden Regional Health Centre says their Personal Protective equipment inventory is doing well.

Doctor Bruce Cook says they actively keep track of their numbers for gowns, surgical masks, N96 masks and gloves.

However, Dr. Cook says “In the past little bit we have noticed a decline in availability of re-stocking the equipment that we have. That is a present concern of ours right now and this is equipment that is used by everyone who works at our hospital.”

He notes it’s a provincial issue and they are looking for alternative supplies at the moment.

Dr. Cook stresses they have received amazing outside support.

“Industries that have made donations. There’s been groups in the community who have been sewing masks for us and donating those. There’s lots of support and we’re very appreciative of all of that. I think Dryden has really been pitching in to help people in the hospital.”

A Canadian Medical Association survey found close to 90% of physicians indicated that a greater availability of PPE would help reduce their anxiety around the pandemic.

Around one third of doctors in community practices said they had less than two days worth of PPE’s.

Chief of Staff Dr. Bruce Cook also believes there is enough COVID-19 testing being done in our community.

He says the main issue here is the speed at which they can get results, especially for those who are waiting to travel for other services.

Dr. Cook notes they are stuck for days waiting for results.

“If we suspect someone has COVID-19 and we are waiting for a swab. We are gowning, masking, gloving as if they do have it every single day that we are waiting for that test result.”

Dr. Cook states “The struggle in turn around time for our test results actually affects our PPE issue. I think we are doing adequate testing here but we’re just not getting the results that we need as quick as we need. That’s something that we are hoping to get some help with from the provincial level.”

The Canadian Medical Association survey found 84% of physicians indicated more testing would help ease their concerns.

To hear more from Chief of Staff Dr. Bruce Cook, visit the Audio link below.

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Mental Health Supports Still Available In Dryden

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The office may be closed but that doesn’t mean mental health services aren’t available for those struggling during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Marcel Penner is the Director for Mental Health and Addictions Services at the Dryden Regional Health Centre and he says all counselling is taking place over the phone or by video conferencing.

“If you are wanting mental health support in the form of counselling. Please feel free to reach out to us at our Intake Line at 223-6678.”

Penner adds “”If you’re wanting to just talk to somebody, you’re not sure if you want to see a councillor but maybe your feeling a little bit in crisis and you just want support, you can call our Crisis Line and that phone number is 1-866-888-8988.”

Penner says he understands a lot of people in the community are going through stress and anxiety right now.

He says the key is ensuring you have compassion for yourself, stressing all of us generally want to be happy and reduce suffering.

Penner suggests “Focus on easing off on yourself and areas that perhaps are causing stress and anxiety. Maybe you’ve set some goals for yourself that you need a little relief from. Just to be ok that maybe you haven’t met all the goals you set for yourself and that you’ll eventually get to those things when you need to.”

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Dryden Hospital Continues Hard Work In COVID-19 Battle

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The Dryden Regional Health Centre is still working diligently to ensure COVID-19 cases are handled properly.

Dryden has been doing well in response to the virus as the 4 local positive cases have been resolved.

Chief Executive Officer Doreen Armstrong-Ross says locally and provincially people have been making the right moves.

“We’ve done a very excellent job in Ontario specifically and certainly in Dryden with our social distancing and all those measures that we put in place to flatten that curve and we have done so.”

Armstrong-Ross says “We are still doing between 8 and 12 tests a day on presumptive patients. We’ve had 2 or 3 in the hospital at any given time that we’re treating as presumptive based on clinical signs.”

Screening continues at the hospital and Armstrong-Ross has stressed that staff treat every case as presumptive if someone is showing any of the signs of the coronavirus.

Media Release Drhc Focus on… by Rayson Martyn on Scribd

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Dryden Hospital Aggressively Monitoring COVID-19

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Staff at the Dryden Regional Health Centre remain vigilant as COVID-19 is in our community.

There have been four positive cases confirmed in Dryden to date.

Chief Executive Officer Doreen Armstrong-Ross says they are screening everyone who enters the hospital.

“If people have the risk factors and we are concerned because of that. We treat people, we call them “presumptive”, so we presume they are positive and use our isolation procedures to care for people in that way.”

Armstrong-Ross says test results could take 5 to 7 days to come back and if needed they will treat each patient as presumptive until the results come back.

She says you will see some staff in Personal Protection Equipment as a precaution in order to prevent spread and keep everyone safe.

The number of local coronavirus cases may be low right now but Armstrong-Ross is urging local residents to stay the course and continue physical distancing and self-isolation.

“It’s not an indication that we can slack off on those. We really need to keep very, very diligent on the social distancing and the hygiene and the quarantining as needed because I think it’s working for us.”

She notes the community has done an outstanding job to stop the spread of COVID-19 but stresses we aren’t out of the woods yet.

Some International health experts have predicted a resurgence of the coronavirus in August when most people are out enjoying the warm weather.

 

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