Sask. Health Authority Apologizes For Error on COVID-19 Hospitalization Numbers

The CEO of the Saskatchewan Health Authority says the SHA is taking full responsibility for the error in reporting of COVID-19 hospitalizations in the province.  This after the SHA reported a discrepancy in hospitalization numbers including ICU counts.  Scott Livingstone says there were a number of factors that led to the errors.  “The biggest one was the designation of patients that have been moved into temporary ICU beds on other wards weren’t being counted as ICU admissions.”  Livingstone says the problem has since been corrected.

While Livingstone wouldn’t give a precise time-frame of how long the reporting error had occurred for, he did suggest it was within the short period of time since numbers have surged, increasing the need for temporary ICU beds, particularly in Regina.  Livingstone adds that at no time was the clinical care of patients impacted by the data reporting, he says all patients received the care that they needed.

On Wednesday the province reported 166 people in hospital and 23 in intensive care, but the actual numbers were 193 with 34 in ICU.

Saskatchewan’s Chief Medical Health Officer says this is the second Easter in which we have had to face the pandemic and hopefully it will be the last.  Dr. Saqib Shahab says this is an Easter weekend where Saskatchewan residents must take care and stay close to our home communities.  “Everyone needs to be especially cautious, we’ve seen how things can change quickly.  While the rest of Saskatchewan has low case numbers, we’ve seen how in some southern communities, within two or three weeks things can turn around very quickly.”