The largest hospital chain in central Florida is entering the “red zone” due to a surge in coronavirus cases caused by the highly spreading Delta mutation.
On Monday, AdventHealth announced that its ICU would enter the red status, only four days after it upgraded its status to “yellow”.
According to the latest update, 862 COVID-19 patients were hospitalized in central Florida, which indicates that the total number of hospitalizations is close to the record of 900 patients in January.
AdventHealth’s Chief Medical Officer, Dr. Victor Herrera, said at a press conference on Monday: “In terms of hospitalized patients, the number of COVID-19 cases is approaching an all-time high, which is beyond our capabilities.”
In the red state, the hospital will begin to reschedule non-urgent elective outpatient surgery on Tuesday to increase capacity. AdventHealth’s ICU is currently full.
“When we are in a situation where our capacity is limited, we may have to reschedule care, which is not urgent. Therefore, in order to remind us of what the red level means, we conducted a systematic review of all procedures. Arranged for patients , If there is anything to wait,” Herrera said. “Then we make a decision to work with the doctor who is caring for the patient so that we can improve our capabilities.”
Eva Marie Uzcateji/AFP
With the increase in vaccination, the hospital has been in a “green” state since mid-February, but now the vaccine has begun to lag, the Delta variant surpassed the United States as the main strain, and the number of COVID-19 hospitalizations and deaths in Florida has risen again.
Herrera pointed out that 94% of patients in the hospital system are not vaccinated.
“Obviously, vaccines are a personal choice, but it is difficult to see, and it is frustrating to see people die from diseases that are currently preventable,” he said. “Obviously, the risk from COVID may be much higher [than the vaccine].”
Although the influx of patients caused AdventHealth to suspend certain medical services, Herrera ensures that the hospital system has the necessary equipment and personnel to continue to care for COVID and non-COVID patients, even if the number of cases continues to rise.
AdventHealth has offices in Orange, Osceola, Seminole, Lake, Polk, Volusia, and Flagler counties.
On Monday, Orange County Mayor Jerry Demings said that the county has about 1,000 new cases every day. The 14-day rolling positive rate is now more than three times that of a month ago and this weekend, from 14% on Friday to 20% on Sunday.
“We are now in crisis mode,” Demings said. “It’s really time now, just like other times in our community, to let you stand up and get vaccinated. We have relatives who depend on us.”
Herrera added: “If someone is vaccinated against COVID-19, based on what we have seen, their chance of being hospitalized is very low, or maybe less than 1%.”
Herrera said that the latest coronavirus surge has also led to an increase in the number of pregnant women infected with the virus in hospitals-he had not seen this group of people intubated in previous waves.
“This reminds our communities and pregnant women to consider vaccinating against COVID-19 and to have a dialogue with their doctors. We hope to encourage pregnant women to consider vaccinating,” he said. “Again, we don’t yet know if this is related to the Delta variant, but it is clear that there are now more pregnant women infected with COVID-19 than before.”
State Department of Health data shows that as of July 23, 60% of Floridans over the age of 12 received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine.
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