“There are no beds.” It’s a phrase that has become far too commonplace inside Emergency Departments and hospitals as physicians seek to find higher levels of care for their patients. What does it really mean? We are in a dire situation.
As COVID-19 continues to rip through our communities – especially where vaccination rates remain low – our ability to care for patients in the way they are accustomed, is no longer the norm. The number of COVID-positive patients hospitalized across the state is quickly nearing peak numbers we experienced in the fall of 2020. Roughly 85% of those hospitalized are unvaccinated. Many are under age 50.
A still-raging virus, coupled with frontline staff who have left healthcare because they are just plain burned out, is creating a perfect storm. Hospitals are full. Dedicated staff are exhausted. Each day, it is becoming more and more difficult to find a bed for the COVID-positive patient who needs high-flow oxygen or the heart patient who needs a stent or the car accident victim. Patients wait. Their loved ones wait. There are no beds.
This is our reality. We’re 20 months into a pandemic and 10 months into the availability of a lifesaving, medical miracle. It’s time to end this pandemic with the one thing that makes a difference: the COVID-19 vaccine.
Healthcare resources are running low. Tensions are running high.
Our commitment to our communities is what keeps us going. But we need a commitment from you: Get the vaccine.
We are here for you. We will fight for your life. But we will likely be forced to make difficult choices if things don’t change.
Please help us. Our plea is for everyone – ages 12 to 112 – to get vaccinated.
And it is our prayer that you or your loved one never has to hear the phrase, “There are no beds.”
— George Morris, MD, Incident Commander for CentraCare’s COVID-19 Response
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