‘I’ve never seen anything like this ever,’ says head of Regina ICU

COVID-19 is sending more patients to the Regina intensive care unit than it can handle.

The numbers are stunning to Dr. Jeffrey Betcher, head of critical care, who says occupancy hit 150 per cent last week.

“I’ve never seen anything like this ever,” said Betcher, who has been practising medicine for about 30 years.

As of Tuesday, there were 186 COVID-19 patients in Saskatchewan hospitals, with 42 in intensive care. Regina continues to hold a high proportion of those hospitalized, with 57 inpatient cases and 26 in the ICU.

Betcher said those ending up in hospital are trending younger, with the median age being those in their 40s.

“These are families. These are men and women that are parents of young children,” he said.

As one would expect, the intensive care unit is a busy place. Betcher said it takes a team to care for patients, not just doctors and nurses, but also various therapists, pharmacists and other health-care aides. He doesn’t forget the housekeeping and service staff either.

“You will not see a nurse and a doctor just going from room to room,” he said. “The whole team is there. They’re multidisciplinary and we’ve had to bring a lot more people onto the teams to meet the demands that are there.”

It’s a sight that would be possible to show others. Opposition NDP Leader Ryan Meili has repeatedly challenged Premier Scott Moe to visit the ICU to see firsthand how the pandemic is burdening the health-care system. Moe has refused.

Betcher said a tour would not compromise patients’ privacy. He has led one before.

“When I took the senior leadership last week and the beginning of this week, they don’t walk into the patients’ rooms,” Betcher said. “They don’t look at patients’ charts. We just kind of stand off to the side.”