Article content

Emergency room overcrowding across Quebec has plunged as people stay home in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic and as hospitals cancel non-essential appointments and reduce other clinical activities.

It’s perhaps the only silver lining in a public health system that is struggling to prevent the spread of the rogue coronavirus and that is bracing for an influx of COVID-19 patients.

We apologize, but this video has failed to load.

tap here to see other videos from our team. Try refreshing your browser, or Montreal ERs are below capacity, but it could be the calm before the storm Back to video

On Thursday morning, the Lakeshore General Hospital was reporting an ER occupancy rate of 65 per cent, compared with rates routinely soaring above 200 per cent in January. It was the same story at the Jewish General Hospital, which reported that it was filled to less than 50 per cent of its capacity.

“ERs like mine have very, very low counts,” a nurse at the Lakeshore in Pointe-Claire told the Montreal Gazette.

“The reason is simple: people are scared to go out, much less to the ER.”

However, the nurse — who agreed to comment on the ER stats on condition of anonymity — warned that this might very well turn out to be the calm before the storm.