GREEN BAY, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) — With COVID-19 cases on the rise, hospitals are feeling the brunt of it.
“We are seeing unprecedented numbers in our hospital. Admissions have literally tripled over the last week,” said Dr. Ashwani Bhatia, chief medical officer for BayCare Clinic. “People have some COVID fatigue, they want to get back to normalcy and I think they have become less careful and that has translated to increased COVID cases.”
Bhatia connected that rise in cases to people not wearing masks or gathering in large groups at bars or parties. Meanwhile, a command team at the hospital is already putting plans in place to deal with that spike in admissions.
“We are full. We are already looking at plans where we need to activate the next phase, where we will need more staffing – we will need to add capacity. And we have plans for that,” Bhatia said. “We are already looking at our surge plans. And the capacity is based on a couple of factors – one is the physical capacity, but also with COVID cases rising in the community, our staff members are also exposed.”
Bhatia says doctors and other healthcare workers are ready to take care of the patients, but are definitely stressed.
“The decision to admit anybody is based on the severity of symptoms and their propensity to deteriorate. Especially patients who have chronic medical illness,” Bhatia added.
But he is encouraged about the current supply of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) for healthcare workers.
He also encourages the community to continue to take precautions against the virus such as masking, social distancing, handwashing and the use of hand sanitizer.
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