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Got a chance to talk to a few hospital execs this week about what the surge in COVID-19 patients has meant for them. And the conversations were pretty illuminating.
By now, I'm sure you've seen this chart from @GeorgiaEMA showing available ICU beds by region ...
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By now, I'm sure you've seen this chart from @GeorgiaEMA showing available ICU beds by region ...
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Some region have fewer than 10 beds left, which, yikes. Regions from east Georgia to south Georgia to even here in metro Atlanta.
So I called around to see what that really meant on the ground for hospitals in those regions.
Lets start with middle Georgia, region H.
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So I called around to see what that really meant on the ground for hospitals in those regions.
Lets start with middle Georgia, region H.
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The head of @FPHospital in Dublin, the biggest in the region, tells me things have been busier in July than in the first three months of the pandemic ... combined. ICU has been full for the last month.
More in the latest DYWYH: https://apple.co/2PcUkCM
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More in the latest DYWYH: https://apple.co/2PcUkCM
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Small hospitals in region H look to @FPHospital when they get full. But when Fairview Park is full, they have to look to elsewhere: Savannah, Augusta.
"We have had a couple opportunities, but they are very, very limited in terms of bed availability," CEO Don Avery told me.
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"We have had a couple opportunities, but they are very, very limited in terms of bed availability," CEO Don Avery told me.
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So, when you see such small numbers of available ICU beds in a hospital region, think: "Where are they going to be able to send patients when they're full?" and "What happens when those hospitals they expect to take their patients get full?"
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You might think: "Oh, but they can just send them to Atlanta! We have so many beds!"
@GradyHealth has been at 100%+ capacity for a bit now, and they've seen a 300-400% increase in COVID patients in the last month, says CEO John Haupert ... and Grady's not alone.
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@GradyHealth has been at 100%+ capacity for a bit now, and they've seen a 300-400% increase in COVID patients in the last month, says CEO John Haupert ... and Grady's not alone.
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But places like Grady can expand into other spaces, to a certain degree. @GovKemp can put beds in the GWCC or other spots--there does seem to be capacity for the system to grow some.
But then you run into another problem: who's going to staff those beds for the very ill?
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But then you run into another problem: who's going to staff those beds for the very ill?
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Folks at @WellstarHealth tell me staffing is their biggest challenge: keeping and retaining ICU nurses and docs when they're in such high demand. Kennestone is working with a staffing agency, they tell me, to bring people in ... even from out of state.
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It's on the mind of @CarlosdelRio7, too.
"You may build all the ICUs you want. You may have all the ventilators you need. But you will not have the staff you need,” he said.
More here from @wabenews: https://bit.ly/2Xc4fwI
#gapol #coronavirusGA
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"You may build all the ICUs you want. You may have all the ventilators you need. But you will not have the staff you need,” he said.
More here from @wabenews: https://bit.ly/2Xc4fwI
#gapol #coronavirusGA
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