AHS launches website to track facility bed shortages, service disruptions

Alberta Health Services has created a website that gives live updates on the availability of bed and care space in the province’s healthcare system.

The AHS announced the initiative last week, noting it plans to update the webpage regularly to inform the public about service reductions in emergency and acute care.

The website says 26 AHS facilities currently have bed closures or other service disruptions in municipalities including Lacombe, Hanna, Rocky Mountain House, Beaverlodge, Westlock, Lac La Biche and St. Paul.

The Royal Alexandra Hospital in Edmonton is facing bed reductions, along with the University of Alberta’s surgery department, which notes two of its operating rooms are currently closed because of a “temporary lack of physician coverage.”

“The system is constantly dynamic, and we manage beds on an hourly and daily basis, depending on patient need, staffing levels, acuity of patients and many other factors,” noted a press release from the AHS.