Surge in COVID-19 patients leads hospital to postpone some procedures

AUSTIN, Texas - A spokesperson with St. David's HealthCare said their hospitals are currently postponing a limited number of procedures to make sure there are enough beds and staff available for all their patients.

According to Austin Public Health, COVID-19 patients at Austin-area hospitals are trending younger than during any previous surge in coronavirus cases.

"Almost all of our hospitalizations are due to unvaccinated patients developing severe illness," said Dr. Desmar Walkes, City of Austin Health Authority.

With 78 new hospital admissions in the Austin metro service area Thursday, the seven day average climbed to its highest level since the end of January, well into Stage 5 risk territory.

According to the health department, that's leading to a staffing issue.

"It's not that we don't have the beds and the equipment, but we need a certain amount of staff to be able to supply a certain amount of care," Walkes said.

The personnel they need are specially trained to operate life-support equipment, which Walkes said is being used on patients as young as 19 years old.

"Patients in ICUs are sicker and staying in the hospital longer than with prior surges, putting more strain on hospital resources," said Walkes.

Austin Public Health said emergency operations staff have surge plans in place that include possible field hospitals if the situation continues to worsen.

There is already a push to find additional personnel.

"There are efforts to recruit more staff. These shortages are occurring because our medical community has been responding for the last 19 months and some people have taken leave, some have retired," Walkes said.

Walkes said hospitals are currently asking retired staff to step in to help, and already many are agreeing to do so.

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