- ADVERTISEMENT -
Los Angeles County as of Thursday still had roughly 716 available hospital beds and 92 ICU beds, while officials cautioned that the numbers can change rapidly as patients are admitted and discharged.
The alarming drop in ICU capacity comes as health officials have warned of a mass strain on the healthcare system stemming largely from people ignoring safety measures and socializing with others.
More recently, health officials said they’ve seen cases stemming from gatherings during Halloween and Thanksgiving and have pleaded with residents to avoid getting together with people from other households over Christmas and New Year’s.
Orange County Urged to Remain Vigilant Against COVID Despite Vaccine Progress
News of the first COVID-19 vaccinations in Orange County, California, was offset by a record number of hospitalizations in the region and a call by officials for residents to keep their guards up.
The Orange County Health Care Agency (OCHCA) reported Dec. 17 that there were 1,519 people hospitalized in the county including 343 in intensive care units (ICU) marking the highest level of COVID-19 related hospitalizations yet.
Health agencies are responding with mobile field hospitals, the temporary suspension of all ambulance diversions for hospitals participating in the 911 system, and a plea for residents to avoid holiday gatherings with outsiders.
Print
It’s a light at the end of the tunnel for what has been a challenging year the first doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine have arrived in Orange County.
On Wednesday, five staff members were selected from Providence St. Joseph’s Hospital in Orange to receive the first vaccinations in Orange County from Pfizer-BioNTech. Jeremy Zoch, chief executive officer at St. Joseph Hospital of Orange, said the doses arrived just hours before a joint news conference at the hospital.
Each inoculation was streamed live and greeted with a round of applause.
“It’s been a long road. A lot [of people] have worked really hard to get us to this point. [We’re] very, very grateful to Pfizer and, soon, Moderna, for what they have done,” said Erik Wexler, the chief executive for Providence’s Southern California region. “Soon, we will be protecting all of our caregivers in our community and eradicating this horrific pandemic.”