The provincial government is stepping up its game ahead of the flu season by funding more hospital beds.
The last flu season left Windsor Regional Hospital at, and even over, capacity for weeks on end as flu ravaged long-term care homes across the region. At one point, ten facilities were reporting outbreaks.
Congestion in hospitals across Ontario during the flu season in 2016 prompted the head of the Ontario Hospital Association to write the province asking for more help.
Minister of Health and Long-Term Care Dr. Eric Hoskins has announced another 1,200 beds across Ontario, including 20 earmarked for Windsor Regional Hospital. The beds will also help reduce wait-times in hospitals year-round.
Another 113 short-term care "spots" are also being funded.
The Erie St. Clair LHIN started planning early for the flu season this year.
Health officials in Canada and across the Northern Hemisphere typically use data from Australia to project not only what kind of strains to vaccinate, but also for some indication how severe the season will be. Australia experienced five times the usual number of hospitalizations over the summer.