Interior Health is maintaining that it has enough personal protective equipment for staff at Royal Inland Hospital, and it says staffing is stable.
That’s despite the BC Nurses Union saying nurses there lacking higher-grade PPE like N-95 masks.
“We do have good supply within this health authority. We’re connected to the provincial supply chain. And we are regularly updating, based on the utilization and requirements at the site levels. So those supplies will be topped up. It will be available for them, and it is available for them,” says Karen Bloemink, the interim vice president of pandemic response at IH.
Bloemink also says staffing is adequate, with staff from other communities filling in for workers who are self isolating. The BCNU has said the hospital is “dangerously understaffed.”
“What I can confirm is that the site is very closely monitoring the staffing levels throughout the course of their shift on a daily basis. The site does feel like they’re managing adequately now. But as I said, that is being monitored frequently and throughout the shifts on a day-over-day basis.”
Apart from the BCNU, several staff at Royal Inland Hospital have reached out to NL News anonymously to say that they are being stretched thin on the frontlines, and that more PPE is needed.
After this story went to air on Radio NL, another hospital staff member, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, saying there was a high-risk situation just last week in the hospital where no N-95 masks were available to any staff involved.
Bloemink acknowledged the stress many frontline healthcare workers in Kamloops are feeling right now.
“I would like to recognize that working in an outbreak environment is a tough scenario for everyone involved… I think it’s important to recognize that in the context of this question.
“My answer though doesn’t change in terms of stability of staffing and availability of PPE.”
The COVID-19 outbreak at Royal Inland Hospital is up to 105 cases at of Thursday afternoon, including 69 staff and 36 patients. Forty of those cases are active.
