Banner Health hospitals, ICUs are filling up in Phoenix area
By PAUL DAVENPORT and JONATHAN J. COOPERDecember 23, 2020 GMT
PHOENIX (AP) Three Banner Health hospitals are operating above capacity as Arizona confronts a surge in coronavirus cases, the top doctor for the state’s largest hospital chain said Wednesday.
Banner’s Desert, Thunderbird and University hospitals in the Phoenix area have more patients than they’re typically licensed to handle, said Dr. Marjorie Bessel, chief clinical officer. Systemwide, Banner’s intensive care units are at 160% of their typical winter peak, she said, and nearly six in 10 ICU patients have COVID-19. Non-emergency procedures, such as cancer surgeries and hip replacements, have been canceled at some hospitals to keep beds open for patients battling the coronavirus.
Rural hospitals and Western Arizona are seeing big increases, according to the latest federal numbers. Author: 12 News Updated: 3:45 PM MST December 23, 2020
PHOENIX Rural and western Arizona hospitals are bearing a heavier load of COVID patients than they have been, according to a 12 News analysis of the latest U.S. Health and Human Services data for every hospital in the state.
The data is a week-by-week look of average patient loads by each hospital in the country. Hospitals in Arizona s major urban centers Phoenix and Tucson have seen massive rises in average COVID-19 patient loads. Banner Estrella Medical Center in Phoenix, for instance, went from an average of 39.6 COVID patients the week of November 6 to an average of 125.1 the week of December 11.
Hospital staffing concerns grow as virus infects employees havasunews.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from havasunews.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Hospital leaders in the region say that’s straining resources.
“The surge is real and we are seeing many more COVID positive patients, Will McConnell, CEO of Kingman Regional Medical Center, said in a Tuesday press conference. That has now transitioned into our own staff and this month we ve had 96 staff members contract COVID.”
The county does not have mask mandate in place. I understand people s reluctance to go down the road of a mask mandate but I also see how it did help in each of these communities that chose to go that direction, said county health director Denise Burley.
The Arizona Department of Health Services reported more than 6,000 new coronavirus infections and 54 new deaths Dec. 23, bringing the state past 8,000 fatalities since the pandemic began.
More than 60% of Arizona’s COVID-19 cases have been identified in Maricopa County.
Pima County has racked up the second-highest number of cases, with about 13% of the state’s total. But that doesn’t mean the current surge is strictly an urban issue.
Residents in rural parts of the state may have less immediate access to emergency care or live in counties where mitigation measures aren’t being taken as seriously as they were early on.