Hospital staff at LHSC told to wear masks at all times

All clinical staff and physicians at London's largest hospital have been told to wear a mask at all times, CBC London has learned.

The directive was issued Thursday morning, and also applies to health care workers at the city's two COVID-19 Assessment Centres. 

LHSC's Pandemic Incident Management Team says a yellow surgical mask is sufficient for most patient care, the memo sent to staff said. Those working in areas of the hospital where the risk is higher, will be issued two isolation masks per shift. 

"Conserve your mask for as long as possible, but once wet, damaged, soiled, or removed, you should immediately dispose of the mask," the memo said. "It is safe to wear your mask for multiple patient encounters."

The hospital says it is following guidelines laid out by the province, and is making decisions that "reflects our current supply of PPE". 

CBC London has asked LHSC for comment, and will provide an update once it is received. 

18 people in hospital

The hospital has seen an increase in COVID-19 cases, almost double since Monday.

There are currently 18 people being treated, including five patients in the Intensive Care Unit at University Hospital and five patients at Victoria Hospital. 

As of Tuesday, visitors to the hospital were severely restricted to help limit the spread of COVID-19. 

"Due to the extremely high risk to visitors, patients and staff, visiting will be prohibited for all COVID-19 patients, including both confirmed and suspected case. Virtual visits will be supported using technology such as iPads," hospital officials said, allowing only essential visitors to other parts of the hospital. 

Essential visitors include the following:

• One visit by one visitor to a patient who is actively dying or during withdrawal of life support (determined by clinical team)
• One support person for a woman in labour 
• At children's hospital, only one caregiver can be at the bedside at any given time. A switch between two caregivers will be permitted every 24 hours. There are exceptions for palliative or critically ill patients. 

PPE shortage

There is a global shortage of PPE and staff will now use a different N95 respirator, also made by 3M, which offers the same level of respiratory protection, according to the memo. 

But in a memo sent to staff at LHSC Tuesday, obtained by CBC News, there does seem to be hope that more much-needed personal protective equipment (PPE) will be arriving shortly. 

"We are anticipating an imminent substantial delivery," hospital officials said.

The federal government has said it is working with suppliers to ensure delivery.