Rising COVID cases driven by the delta variant are already putting pressure on hospitals as some hit capacity over the weekend.“We’re seeing, not only our cases rise, we’re seeing our hospitalizations rise as well as intensive care admissions within the region,” said Hamilton County health commissioner Greg Kesterman.Kesterman said in three weeks, Hamilton County COVID cases went from averaging about 13 a day to averaging 71 a day.Regional numbers from the Health Collaborative show hospitalizations have jumped in one month from about 40 to more than 130. Now, 40 is the number of people on ventilators in the Southwest Ohio region.The numbers are lower than they were at the peak of the pandemic, but hospitals are already under stress. “Over the weekend, a couple of our hospitals hit capacity,” Kesterman said.“We have a very different starting point going into this surge. It will take less cases to put a strain on the hospitals,” said vice president of clinical strategies for the Health Collaborative Tiffany Mattingly.Mattingly said last year hospitals stopped elective procedures and other wellness efforts to make space for the oncoming surge. All of those procedures have returned.“We are definitely at a different stress point than we were last fall,” Mattingly said.Kesterman said the hospital system has room for more patients, but at any given time, a hospital could hit capacity. If COVID cases continue to rise, expect hospitals to reexamine those elective procedures again.“I think the hospitals are going to have to evaluate all of those modes of decompression to make sure we have room for all patients who need care,” Mattingly said.
HAMILTON COUNTY, Ohio —
Rising COVID cases driven by the delta variant are already putting pressure on hospitals as some hit capacity over the weekend.
“We’re seeing, not only our cases rise, we’re seeing our hospitalizations rise as well as intensive care admissions within the region,” said Hamilton County health commissioner Greg Kesterman.
Kesterman said in three weeks, Hamilton County COVID cases went from averaging about 13 a day to averaging 71 a day.
Regional numbers from the Health Collaborative show hospitalizations have jumped in one month from about 40 to more than 130. Now, 40 is the number of people on ventilators in the Southwest Ohio region.
The numbers are lower than they were at the peak of the pandemic, but hospitals are already under stress.
“Over the weekend, a couple of our hospitals hit capacity,” Kesterman said.
“We have a very different starting point going into this surge. It will take less cases to put a strain on the hospitals,” said vice president of clinical strategies for the Health Collaborative Tiffany Mattingly.
Mattingly said last year hospitals stopped elective procedures and other wellness efforts to make space for the oncoming surge. All of those procedures have returned.
“We are definitely at a different stress point than we were last fall,” Mattingly said.
Kesterman said the hospital system has room for more patients, but at any given time, a hospital could hit capacity. If COVID cases continue to rise, expect hospitals to reexamine those elective procedures again.
“I think the hospitals are going to have to evaluate all of those modes of decompression to make sure we have room for all patients who need care,” Mattingly said.