On Monday, members of the Indianapolis Coalition for Patient Safety (ICPS), a free-standing nonprofit comprised of leaders from major Central Indiana health systems, held a virtual briefing regarding the dire state of the pandemic in Indiana.
Hospital leaders representing Ascension St. Vincent, Community Health Network, Eskenazi Health, Franciscan Health Indianapolis, Indiana University Health, Richard L. Roudebush VA Medical Center and Suburban Health Organization provided an update on the growing number of hospitalizations and shrinking capacity in the intensive care units of hospitals in Central Indiana and across the state.
Indiana is averaging more than 6,000 COVID-19 patients per day, with approximately 3.5 percent of new cases requiring hospitalization. While this percentage seems small, it has added up quickly, leading all local hospitals to struggle with inpatient, ICU and ventilator capacity. ICPS expressed special concern about the shortage of ICU beds, as this capacity is needed not only for severely ill COVID-19 patients, but also for other patients needing acute care for heart attacks, car accidents and other possible emergency situations.
“I want to say thank you to Hoosiers who are doing their part to protect themselves and others from catching and spreading COVID-19,” said Dr. Michele Saysana, chair of the ICPS and chief quality and safety officer for IU Health. “While Friday’s FDA authorization for the Pfizer vaccine represents a light at the end of the tunnel, until we have widespread vaccination, we must continue to stay vigilant in our efforts to reduce the spread of COVID-19. Frontline healthcare workers and other groups at higher risk of getting COVID-19 will be among the first to receive a vaccine. And while this is promising news, we are far from mass vaccination that will allow us to return to ‘normal.’ We must continue to follow the prevention guidelines that we know work, and wear masks in public, wash our hands frequently and socially distance to prevent the spread of COVID-19 in our communities.”
In addition to approaching capacity, Indiana hospitals are experiencing staffing exhaustion and shortages. For more than nine months, ICU nurses have been coping with the stresses of caring for COVID-19 patients, who require a great deal of hands-on care. Due to the spread of the virus in our communities, hospital staff members are getting sick, putting a greater strain on those who can work. While Central Indiana hospitals are bringing in traveling nurses whenever possible, these nurses are becoming more expensive and harder to find, as demand greatly exceeds supply.
The approaching winter weather and holidays threaten to make the current situation worse. Like other aerosol-transmitted viruses, COVID-19 lasts longer in the drier winter air. The weather also forces people indoors, in spaces with less ventilation, making it much easier for the virus to spread.
“Local hospitals are fast approaching crisis. We ask that Hoosiers remain cautious during the coming winter months and the approaching holidays by following statewide and local restrictions,” ICPS members said in a joint statement. “Please continue to practice preventive measures that slow the spread of COVID-19: wear a mask when inside and outside where you can’t socially distance, avoid gathering with anyone outside your household, wash your hands frequently and keep a distance of at least six feet from others when indoors.”