Squamish General Hospital will undertake only urgent and emergency procedures and will postpone all non-urgent scheduled surgeries.
This is part of government’s Outbreak Response Phase 2 and it will be followed by all hospitals in the province.
All BC hospitals will also review operating-room capacity daily to prioritize urgent and emergency cases.
Meanwhile, Lions Gate Hospital is moving to Outbreak Response Phase 3, which means the hospital will only accept emergency patients.
Lions Gate Hospital is also preparing to open a dedicated COVID-19 unit to provide care to those with the virus.
Meanwhile, BC is also moving to restrict visitors in long-term care to essential visits only.
Essential visits include compassionate visits for end-of-life care and visits that support care plans for residents, such as families who visit to provide assistance with feeding or mobility.
BC announced 45 new cases of COVID-19 today, for a total of 231 cases in the province.
Of the new cases, 13 are currently hospitalized, seven are in intensive care, five have recovered and the remaining patients are at home in isolation.