ER:
Shifts are unbelievably slow. We are sending staff home ( I was asked to sign out 2 hours early today) because of how dead the ER was.
Don't get me wrong....we can still have busy days, but overall, volumes are down. In my 8 hour shift today, I had zero COVID patients today ( I was one of 4 providers working during that time....can't speak for them). The tent outside the ER in the parking lot sits empty and waiting.... (better to be prepared I suppose).
We have been admitting 1-2 COVID19 patients a shift. This is a very manageable number and actually less than what we would normally send to the ICU on a normal day. With the decreased volumes....it is all very manageable
We are still waiting for the "peak" which we are told is going to be in about 12 days. If that happens, I feel like we are prepared. Over the last 15 years, I can not tell you how many shifts I have worked with all 36 beds in the ER full, 40+ patients in the waiting room, all beds in the hospital full, and boarding ICU patients in the ER. I am not trying to downplay the pandemic by any means......but this is a currently a walk in the park compared to an average shift.
Opinion: I feel like we have done a great job as a community to limit the casualties. Social distancing and community education has worked. I think it would be a much different story if we had not locked down. The elderly are very susceptible to this virus, and we have done an incredible job at keeping them safe. Community spread in the young and middle aged population has been widespread, but not devastatingly lethal. In addition, folks are staying home and not coming to the ER for BS. The normal non emergent complaints I would see in the ER have almost disappeared, probably due to "fear of the Corona Virus".
Urgent Care:
The Urgent Care I work for has tested over 2300 patients in the past 2 weeks. They are offering self pay testing, so no criteria needs to be met. If you want the test, and have $120, you can get it. Turn around for those tests have been on average 2.5 days. We are right around 17% positives of all folks tested. I have lost count of the number of asymptomatic people that I have scheduled for testing.....and many others have symptoms, or had known exposures.
Our volumes are way down. About 50% of what they used to be. People are just staying home.
They are cutting hours there as well.
We see all patients virtually if they have URI symptoms or concern for COVID19. Otherwise, we will see you in the clinic.
As stated in my previous post, Im a PA who has worked in emergency medicine for 15 years and just started picking up at an urgent care recently. I work in the Houston area at one of the large system's community hospitals.
Shifts are unbelievably slow. We are sending staff home ( I was asked to sign out 2 hours early today) because of how dead the ER was.
Don't get me wrong....we can still have busy days, but overall, volumes are down. In my 8 hour shift today, I had zero COVID patients today ( I was one of 4 providers working during that time....can't speak for them). The tent outside the ER in the parking lot sits empty and waiting.... (better to be prepared I suppose).
We have been admitting 1-2 COVID19 patients a shift. This is a very manageable number and actually less than what we would normally send to the ICU on a normal day. With the decreased volumes....it is all very manageable
We are still waiting for the "peak" which we are told is going to be in about 12 days. If that happens, I feel like we are prepared. Over the last 15 years, I can not tell you how many shifts I have worked with all 36 beds in the ER full, 40+ patients in the waiting room, all beds in the hospital full, and boarding ICU patients in the ER. I am not trying to downplay the pandemic by any means......but this is a currently a walk in the park compared to an average shift.
Opinion: I feel like we have done a great job as a community to limit the casualties. Social distancing and community education has worked. I think it would be a much different story if we had not locked down. The elderly are very susceptible to this virus, and we have done an incredible job at keeping them safe. Community spread in the young and middle aged population has been widespread, but not devastatingly lethal. In addition, folks are staying home and not coming to the ER for BS. The normal non emergent complaints I would see in the ER have almost disappeared, probably due to "fear of the Corona Virus".
Urgent Care:
The Urgent Care I work for has tested over 2300 patients in the past 2 weeks. They are offering self pay testing, so no criteria needs to be met. If you want the test, and have $120, you can get it. Turn around for those tests have been on average 2.5 days. We are right around 17% positives of all folks tested. I have lost count of the number of asymptomatic people that I have scheduled for testing.....and many others have symptoms, or had known exposures.
Our volumes are way down. About 50% of what they used to be. People are just staying home.
They are cutting hours there as well.
We see all patients virtually if they have URI symptoms or concern for COVID19. Otherwise, we will see you in the clinic.
As stated in my previous post, Im a PA who has worked in emergency medicine for 15 years and just started picking up at an urgent care recently. I work in the Houston area at one of the large system's community hospitals.
