Covid and Hospitals: How are things now?

[CrunchRN]

Just curious. Here in DFW I see hospitalizations are rising to 14%. How are things in the hospitals? Are things relatively normal? No more furloughs?

Please share. I am not in acute care, but I am of course very interested in the effects on acute care staff.

[macawake, MSN]

The number of hospitalized patients who are Covid positive is increasing rapidly in the U.S. now just as it is in many European countries. Even though there are early signs that Omicron in many cases causes milder disease than Delta, it still has the potential to cause serious disease. And the sheer volume of new infections we’re seeing means that the pressure on hospitals is increasing. 

I feel that one of the best metrics to keep an eye on, is how many patients recieve ICU care for Covid at any given time (because that’s not an incidental case), and the trajectory of that variable is at the moment pointing almost straight up. 
 

Number of hospitalized Covid patients per million inhabitants. (You can choose different countries and compare if you like).

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https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/current-covid-hospitalizations-per-million?time=earliest..latest&country=~USA
 

Scroll down to the graph titled ”How many people are in Intensive Care (ICU) due to COVID-19  at a given time?”

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https://ourworldindata.org/covid-hospitalizations
 

In a country as large as the U.S., the situation is bound to vary between different parts of the country, but the overall number of hospitalizations is without a doubt increasing at the moment. 
 

I’m hoping we all will see the peak soon, and cases starting to decrease. 

[Wuzzie]

15 minutes ago, macawake said:

I feel that one of the best metrics to keep an eye on, is how many patients recieve ICU care for Covid at any given time (because that’s not an incidental case), and the trajectory of that variable is at the moment pointing almost straight up. 

I agree but in my state that number is flat and has been for months.

[nursej22, MSN, RN]

56 minutes ago, Wuzzie said:

I agree but in my state that number is flat and has been for months.

In my state, ICU occupancy has doubled since 12/24/22, and ventilator use is up 60 %, as of 1/6/22. I am guessing that over the weekend those numbers are higher. 

[subee, MSN, CRNA]

5 hours ago, CrunchRN said:

A time to avoid the hospital if you can. I do not understand why everyone is rushing to medical centers if they have only exposure or mild symptoms. Such a waste of resources. 

 

I sure hope this peaks and declines soon. Thank you to everyone working so hard. 

And yet, I haven't seen a single PSA on TV or heard one on the radio, to attempt to educate people not to go to the ER for non-emergencies.  We could have started them on Fox:)  Maybe we can get them to think about why they would even go to a hospital if they don't trust vaccines.  Nah,,,,,,that would never work.

[nursej22, MSN, RN]

2 hours ago, gere7404 said:

Because they’ve had the idea that if they get covid they will die slammed into their heads every day for the last two years

literally had someone get discharged by an MD from the ambulance last night. 22 year old called 911 because they were exposed to covid and they wanted to be seen. Doctor saw them in the rig and said goodnight. 

I must be consuming a different flavor of media. What I have been hearing for the last two years is that vaccines, social distancing and masks are the most effective means of avoiding COVID. I have never heard that getting a test will save your life.

For the last year, the local message has been encouraging people to avoid the ED except for life-threatening emergencies and instead reach out to primary care providers and walk-in clinics, or using tele-health. Unfortunately, too many people don't have insurance and many same day clinics refuse the uninsured. 

 

[Wuzzie]

27 minutes ago, nursej22 said:

For the last year, the local message has been encouraging people to avoid the ED except for life-threatening emergencies and instead reach out to primary care providers and walk-in clinics, or using tele-health. Unfortunately, too many people don't have insurance and many same day clinics refuse the uninsured. 

But the vast majority of these people don't even need this. Unless the symptoms are severe there is literally nothing that needs to be done outside of the usual viral illness treatment. You would not believe the calls we are getting. People have lost their minds.

[toomuchbaloney]

6 minutes ago, Wuzzie said:

But the vast majority of these people don't even need this. Unless the symptoms are severe there is literally nothing that needs to be done outside of the usual viral illness treatment. You would not believe the calls we are getting. People have lost their minds.

I think that is understandable that people are concerned and seeking care.  This is the only pandemic they've ever lived through.  The pandemic messaging had been troubled by politics for 2 years now.  Millions of Americans have been adversely affected or killed by this virus.  All while getting intentionally mixed messages from their political leaders and preferred media. 

[nursej22, MSN, RN]

46 minutes ago, Wuzzie said:

But the vast majority of these people don't even need this. Unless the symptoms are severe there is literally nothing that needs to be done outside of the usual viral illness treatment. You would not believe the calls we are getting. People have lost their minds.

I don't know about your "these people" but influenza is ramping up in our area, too, and some may benefit from an antiviral, not to mention if someone as a bacterial infection like strep throat or an ear infection. 

[Guest219794]

7 hours ago, CrunchRN said:

A time to avoid the hospital if you can. I do not understand why everyone is rushing to medical centers if they have only exposure or mild symptoms. Such a waste of resources. 

 

I sure hope this peaks and declines soon. Thank you to everyone working so hard. 

They do this because we have trained them to do this.  And we continue to reward the behavior.  

[Wuzzie]

15 minutes ago, nursej22 said:

I don't know about your "these people" but influenza is ramping up in our area, too, and some may benefit from an antiviral, not to mention if someone as a bacterial infection like strep throat or an ear infection. 

I'm not talking about the immunocompromised  or people who are sick with super-imposed bacterial infections. Thats a big leap you made. I am talking about the ones with the sniffles who are crowding our EDs and flooding triage lines. 

[toomuchbaloney]

13 minutes ago, Wuzzie said:

I'm not talking about the immunocompromised  or people who are sick with super-imposed bacterial infections. Thats a big leap you made. I am talking about the ones with the sniffles who are crowding our EDs and flooding triage lines. 

Do you know which people are there because they need a test result for work?

[subee, MSN, CRNA]

1 hour ago, toomuchbaloney said:

Do you know which people are there because they need a test result for work?

People who need test for work can do that online now.  No need to go to an ER or anywhere else.  $42 per test here.  Still a lot cheaper than an in hospital test.