oldag941 said:
I'm also a little perplexed on how hospitals supposedly are now at 100% fill without triggering any of the overflow facilities being stood up. Or cancelling elective surgeries (which I haven't heard happening). Isn't there a contingency plan for capacity access when over 100%? Isn't that what we saw in April? Convention center opening to medical beds? Parkland activated their COVID unit? I saw that Parkland stood down a COVID floor back in late summer I believe. Has that been reopened? And with the 11% CODID hospital beds occupied stat, how does that equate? Lots of questions to understand the situation but so few honest answer
You could simply ask the doctors on the front lines managing this, the answer sometimes is quite simple.
The hospitals are now flexing in beds that would otherwise have not been an "ICU bed" where the requirements are round the clock care, but don't need full life support. These "swing beds" or what have you were not initially practical due to the (perceived) need for ventilator that is no longer required. ICU standard of care has instead shifted to O2 and proning, and venting is basically reserved for those we don't want to watch die choking to death.