State's hospitals report rise in coronavirus patients

For a while, things calmed down.

The number of COVID-19 patients at Saint Francis Medical Center dropped to zero after Southeast Missouri's second surge in the fall.

Now, to the dismay of healthcare professionals, COVID-19 patients have begun to grow in number in hospitals once again.

"We've definitely seen an uptick in hospitalizations," Maryann Reese, president and chief executive officer of Saint Francis Healthcare System said.

As of Friday, Saint Francis Medical Center had a total of 35 COVID-19 patients. The hospital had 28 patients just the week before, according to Reese.

The situation is similar across most hospitals in Missouri.

COVID-19 hospitalizations have risen substantially in the state since early November.

Hospitalizations in the state reached a low of 951 patients after last fall's surge.

Now, according to the state Department of Health and Senior Services, hospitalizations have risen to 3,938. The state had 2,862 inpatients during its previous peak on Dec. 22, 2020.

Reese said hospitals from as far away as Texas have tried to send patients to Saint Francis Medical Center, but the hospital staff are saving beds and resources for local patients.

Saint Francis Medical System has yet to reach its record for the most COVID-19 patients it's housed at a time. During the pandemic's worst, the hospital had 68 COVID-19 patients.

"Omicron is a lot more transmissible, so we're seeing people have mild symptoms like they would with colds, but they're still very contagious," Reese said.

Health care workers are no exception to the omicron variant's transmissibility.

Saint Francis has seen an increased number of employees who miss work because of COVID-19 illness or exposure, according to Reese.

"It's stressing the health system because we have more people out," Reese said.

None of Saint Francis Medical System's employees are sick enough to be hospitalized, Reese said, but decreased staff availability has affected the hospital's throughput for patients.

The Southeast Missourian contacted SoutheastHEALTH for comment, but as of press time, no comment had been received.

People with non-emergent medical issues should avoid going to emergency rooms (ER), Reese said. Patients without time-critical diagnoses such as strokes and heart attacks could have long waits in the hospital's ER.

"We don't have anybody boarding in the ER right now, which is good," Reese said. "All of our patients have beds in our hospital."

Saint Francis Medical Center, along with several hospitals across the country, deal with staff illnesses coupled with pandemic fatigue.

"We've had nurses that have decided they just don't want to do this anymore," Reese said. "It's stressful; they're burnt out; they're tired. We've had clinical staff go for other jobs they can work remotely."

Reese emphasized the importance of vaccinations to help curb stress on the healthcare system.

Of the hospital's 35 COVID-19 patients, 25 are unvaccinated. As are most of the hospital's seven patients on ventilators.

"We're fully prepared to care for the communities we serve, but I ask again, help us help you," Reese said. "Please get vaccinated, get boosted, wear a mask, limit gatherings. We'll get through this."