Two more critical care beds have been added to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) at the Chatham-Kent Health Alliance (CKHA) to ensure more patients needing critical care get it closer to home.
The new beds bring the number of ICU beds at the CKHA from 10 to 12.
“This enhancement to the ICU marks a milestone for critical care services at CKHA. The expansion of the unit will not only enhance our ability to provide specialized life-saving care but also ensures patients can receive treatment locally. The extra beds will lessen the need to transfer certain patients to larger centres, enabling more people in the community to access specialized care,” said the Head of CKHA ICU Dr. Brent Herritt.
CKHA Vice President of Clinical Programs and Operations Caen Suni said the new beds are very welcomed.
“The expansion of critical care beds within the ICU not only enhances CKHA’s service delivery, it also allows our team to look at expanding care models within the unit. This is a longer-term vision for our organization as we continue to look at how we can offer more types of care to our community,” said Suni.
CKHA’s critical care services also include 12 beds in the Progressive Care Unit (PCU) for a total of 24 beds.
Some common ailments treated within CKHA’s ICU include respiratory failure, sepsis, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), heart failure, arrhythmia, drug toxicity, pneumonia and diabetes.
Click here to learn more about critical care services at CKHA.