Emergency rooms across the state are facing a surge in patient numbers, presenting challenges for delivering adequate care. Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston even described the situation as a “full-blown crisis.” While officials in Worcester haven’t used the same terminology, Dr. Eric Dickson, president and CEO at UMass Memorial Health, stated that the overcrowding in the health system’s emergency rooms is the worst he has seen in decades. Dickson expressed concerns about managing the situation with no clear end in sight. St. Vincent Hospital also experienced an all-time record in their emergency room last week with 180 patients, attributed to an increase in respiratory illness cases such as COVID-19, influenza, and respiratory syncytial virus.
The main issue, according to Dickson, is not the shortage of hospital beds, but rather the lack of coordination in handling the patient overflow from hospitals to skilled nursing facilities, rehabilitation centers, and nursing homes. As a result, patients are backing up in the emergency rooms. This has led to a 35% increase in the “daily census” at UMass compared to pre-COVID years. The hospital currently has 850 patients admitted but only 750 beds, which means some patients are placed in hallways and other non-traditional areas.
Dr. Dickson emphasized the need for better coordination of healthcare resources across the state and region to address the crisis. He also called for an increase in staffing at lower-level care providers and urged the state to explore ways to allocate more funding to these facilities. St. Vincent Hospital observed an increase in respiratory illnesses and other medical emergencies, with the ER averaging above its normal daily patient count.
Despite the declining number of COVID infections reported by the state Department of Public Health, Dr. Darnobid from St. Vincent Hospital cautioned that the actual numbers of illness in the community might be higher due to limited testing. He emphasized the importance of vaccination as the best defense against COVID-19, influenza, and respiratory syncytial virus, highlighting the low vaccination rates in Central Massachusetts.
:format(webp)/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25596782/DSC08149.jpg "Google’s Black Friday sale options document low costs on Pixel, Nest, and extra")
