Early this week the province went to stage two of its pandemic response plan and it has freed up space within the health care system.

Health Minister Adrian Dix says cancelling non-urgent elective surgery has meant a great deal when it comes to freeing up beds.

” Prior to the COVID-19 response we averaged 103.5 per cent capacity in our acute care system. That capacity as of now or a snapshot as of today, is at at 78.5 per cent,” he said on Friday. “That’s a change in occupancy in a very short period, particularly this week of 25 per cent or 2,398 beds.”

“Our critical care beds are at 61.8 per cent capacity and I just want to put that context because there is a lot of discussion of what people are doing in terms of preparing, but I think in terms of preparedness 22 patients currently in acute care just to put in context, this preparedness is not what happened in other jurisdictions.”

Dix says these measures show how much we have learned from those other places, like China and Italy.

In terms of the impact on health care workers, Provincial Health Officer Dr Bonnie Henry says is has no way of preventing it and it has been a tremendous challenge for the health care sector to watch what is happening both here and around the world.

“We know as well that about two dozen of our health care workers here in British Columbia have been affected with this virus. And I am relieved and happy to say that none of them have had severe illness,” Henry said.

“All of them have had very mild illness and there have been some very short hospitalizations, but for the most part people have been managed at home and that is something that we are very grateful for.”

Dr. Henry says it has the supplies it needs right now and it’s committed to doing everything it can to have what it needs to best protect everyone in our health care system.