Welcome to Code Orange

You might have heard the term "Code Orange" before. In Canadian hospitals, it's the emergency alert for a mass casualty event - a bus crash, a fire, a van attack. It means a sudden flood of injured people is coming, and the hospital shifts into crisis mode. Staff drop everything. Surgeries are delayed. Beds are cleared. Everyone works together because there's no other choice.

This name was chosen for this column because, frankly, Alberta's healthcare system feels like it's been in a permanent Code Orange for years. Overcrowded emergency rooms. Staff shortages. Long waits for surgeries. A government that seems more interested in picking fights than fixing problems.

And patients - real people with real pain - getting caught in the middle.

This column is about what's working, what's not, and who's getting hurt while the rest of us argue about it. It's about the nurses burning out, the families desperate for care, and the decisions being made in Edmonton that affect all of us.

Welcome to Code Orange.

Let's talk about what's going on.