A man from Steinbach is in the intensive care unit (ICU) in St. Thomas, Ontario as he battles COVID-19.

Chelsey Waldner says her father Travis Olifirowich had to go to Bethesda Regional Health Centre in Steinbach last week Tuesday because of his illness. Then on Monday of this week, he was transferred to Winnipeg in order to be placed on a ventilator and on Tuesday he was flown to Ontario.

"It's definitely pretty scary to think that he's a twenty-five hour drive away," admits Waldner. "But it's also scary to realize how flooded the hospitals are that they have to be sending patients out."

Waldner says it gave her family some relief to know that they only fly stable patients to hospitals in other provinces. She says her family believes that he is receiving very good care right now.

According to Waldner, on Monday her father was one hundred per cent dependent on the ventilator. By Tuesday, his condition had improved to the point he was only fifty per cent dependent, though still sedated.

"The nurses every day set up a video chat, so my Mom, myself and my sister are able to see him and talk to him and tell him we love him," shares Waldner. "We hope he can hear us but he's in that state of sedation right now still."

Waldner says when you hear about the severity of someone battling COVID-19, it never feels real until it hits your family or a close friend. And, she asks Manitobans to be compassionate towards anyone who has to go through something like this, and also to be compassionate towards health care workers.

"I also just want to thank all of our health care workers for just doing so much for the people who are sick," she says. "I'm just so thankful to the health care workers."

According to Shared Health, as of Thursday, there are 39 critically ill COVID-19 patients from Manitoba currently being treated out of province. This includes 37 patients in Ontario and two in Saskatchewan. The number of patients returned to Manitoba for ongoing hospital care following discharge from an out of province ICU is 10. The number of critically ill COVID-19 patients transported out of province since May 18 is at 51. That includes 49 patients to Ontario and two to Saskatchewan.