RICHMOND, Ky. — Hospitals across the state are feeling the strain of the coronavirus with resources depleting quickly.
What You Need To Know
- Hospitals across the state are feeling the strain of the coronavirus
- Baptist Health Richmond opened COVID-19 overflow wings as cases soar
- On Thursday, 28 patients are hospitalized at Baptist Health Richmond, two of them are vaccinated
Baptist Health Richmond in Madison County is among the many hospitals managing as COVID-19 cases soar, shifting medical units into more COVID-19 and intensive care units.
“The escalation of this wave two this delta variant has really spiked tremendously in a short period of time,” said Vice President and Chief Nursing Officer Dr. Mendy Blair.
The hallway Blair stood in for the interview has shifted to care for more patients battling COVID-19.
“What wouldn't normally be a regular medical-surgical telemetry wing, or where we put patients that come in for medical conditions and we admit them or surgical patients and we keep them here post-operatively, has now turned into a COVID[-19] positive wing,” Blair said.
In August, Baptist Health Richmond temporarily suspended elected procedures for two weeks. Yhis month they extended that to manage the influx of patients.
“And what we've seen is such a dramatic spike and COVID[-19] positive patients admitted that has caused a lot of strain on resources and a lot of strain on looking for bed capacity and enough staff to be able to properly care because we're going to deliver the same high-quality care for every patient, but it really presents its challenges now that we're in such a COVID[-19] surge,” Blair said.
Blair said plans change not month to month, but at times, hour by hour.
“It's extremely stressful on our staff and our providers, because they cannot bank on what their plan is going to be right now at this minute, is going to work in the next couple of hours even,” Blair said.
Looking past the emotional toll, Blair said the doctors and nurses are fighting to keep patients alive.
“And you see that it's as it's nearing the end for these patients. I had one nurse tell me that what would make her day is out of everybody she's cared for, she works in the intensive care unit, is it just one day she could come in, it would make her whole world to see one patient come off the ventilator, just one, and be able to survive this,” Blair said.
She said the circumstances are dire, especially with more patients getting on a ventilator.
“And when they get on it, it's everybody turns around and looks at themselves and says, ‘you know what I’m, I’m not sure we're gonna see them make it through,’ it's almost an indicator at that point that you're afraid that the next step is we're going to lose them. and, and when you have that nursing type lady tell you, I would just love to see one of them come off the ventilator, it will tell you how serious this illness is,” Blair said.
On Thursday, 28 patients were hospitalized at Baptist Health Richmond, two of them were vaccinated.
“I’ve never seen the challenges that healthcare providers are facing right now and in my whole entire career in 37 years,” Blair said.
Blair is pleading to the community to help the medical industry by getting a COVID-19 vaccine.
Outside the hospital in the parking lot, Baptist Health Richmond is offering COVID-19 testing on weekdays. No appointments are needed.