3 Fredericton-region hospitals denied 'critical state' status

Social Development has denied a request from Horizon Health Network to grant "critical state" status to three more Fredericton-region hospitals, which would have temporarily prioritized their patients on the nursing home waitlist.

The department informed Horizon it did not provide the "necessary data" for the Oromocto Public Hospital, the Upper River Valley Hospital in Waterville, and Hotel-Dieu of St. Joseph in Perth-Andover, to meet the criteria for approval, said Greg Doiron, vice-president of clinical operations.

But it advised Horizon that it "may submit a request for those specific hospitals with supporting data," he said.

Doiron did not say whether Horizon intends to reapply to fast-track alternate level of care patients waiting at those three hospitals for a nursing home bed.

Under the Nursing Homes Act, the Social Development minister may grant "critical state admission prioritization" to a hospital for up to 30 days at a time when:

Horizon has started using the new regulation to request temporary prioritization for alternate level of care patients — people who have been medically discharged but are waiting in hospital for placement in a nursing home or other long-term care setting, as a number of its hospitals struggle with high occupancy rates, staffing shortages and long wait times.

Normally, nursing home admissions are done chronologically.

On Jan. 8, Horizon applied for this change in status for all four of its Fredericton-region hospitals, including the Dr. Everett Chalmers Regional Hospital in Fredericton.

Social Development Minister Jill Green approved the Chalmers request on Jan. 23.

"This government understands that there is an exceptional need in some of our urban centres, and evidence provided from Horizon Health Network suggested that implementing this prioritization would assist with that need," Green said in a statement earlier this week.

"This is not something we do lightly," she said. "This reprioritization will decrease the number of patients waiting in the hospital, and instead provide them with the appropriate care in a long-term care residence."

Up until Friday, neither Social Development nor Horizon responded to requests for an update on the status of the other three Fredericton-region hospitals.

"If a regional health authority (RHA) believes a hospital meets the critical state criteria, the RHA must provide data that supports that," said department spokesperson Rebecca Howland.

"This includes data that shows the emergency rooms and/or acute care units are over-capacity, lack of available hospital beds, cancelled surgeries, and delays in off-loading in the ambulance bays," she said in an emailed statement.