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The latest increase in COVID-19 cases has helped reduce the lack of space in Cincinnati-area hospitals, with the number of occupied medico-surgical beds reaching their highest level since the winter.
The growing number of patients this week has created moderate to extreme pressure on local hospital staff, according to public health officials. This is the first time that this level has been reached in months.
The seven-day moving average for the number of occupied medical-surgical beds rose to 2,363 on Monday, according to data compiled by the Health Collaborative at the Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center’s Center for Clinical & Translational Science & Training.
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Not all new data from the hospital was bad. The seven-day average of the number of beds occupied in intensive care units was 458, in the middle of a range that causes only minor to moderate pressure on staff. Intensive care units were operating at normal levels just a few weeks ago, according to data from the Cincinnati Children.
The number of COVID-19 positive patients in local hospitals rose from 50 on July 10 to 183 on August 9. The number of COVID-19 patients in local intensive care units rose from 20 on August 10 to more than 64. The number of COVID-19 patients on ventilators was 43.
The status of hospitals follows the fourth wave of the COVID-19 pandemic that hit the Cincinnati area hard last week.
The Health Collaborative, which tracks data from all hospitals in the region, is monitoring the impact of the increase on staffing and bed availability. In the first months of the pandemic, hospitals preparing for the first wave canceled most elective surgeries in anticipation of an influx of COVID-19 patients.
It’s not happening now, but public health officials say the trend is worrying.
“Even more important than ever to get vaccinated, so as not to overwhelm our health care system,” said Christa Hyson, spokesperson for the Health Collaborative.
The increase in hospitalizations and intensive care admissions generally follows the increase in new cases of COVID-19 infection, and the numbers on this front have been alarming in recent weeks.
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All but one of the 16 counties in the Cincinnati area remain marked “red” by public health officials for having reached the highest level of COVID-19 transmission.
New cases in the region are higher than at any time since early March, as a winter wave of infections wore off and vaccinations became more widely available.
Hamilton, Clermont, Warren and Ohio counties have all turned red in the past week, and the seven-day moving average of daily new cases has more than tripled in those counties in the past three weeks.
People living in the region’s 16 counties should wear masks indoors, even if they are vaccinated against COVID-19, based on federal health guidelines and in effect novel levels of coronavirus transmission as of Tuesday.
Hamilton County health officials have also re-emphasized the need to wear masks indoors. The notice brought a handful of protesters to the health department offices in Corryville on Monday. Some of the protesters also had anti-vaccine and anti-vaccine warrant signs.
Counties with a high or red transmission level (100 or more cases per 100,000 people) as of August 9, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention:
- Brown, Clermont, Hamilton and Warren counties in southwestern Ohio.
- Boone, Campbell, Kenton, Bracken, Gallatin, Grant and Pendleton counties in northern Kentucky.
- Dearborn, Franklin, Ohio and Union counties in southeast Indiana.
Counties at substantial or amber transmission level (50-99 cases per 100,000 people):
- Butler County in southwestern Ohio.
The CDC calculation is based on infection rates over the past seven days.
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Where is COVID-19 particularly strong now?
Cincinnati Children’s statisticians also compile infection rates by postal code for the Health Collaborative, the occupational group of hospitals in the area. They identify local postal codes with the highest per capita case rates over the past 14 days.
On August 9, it was 45203 (part of West End and Queensgate), 45214 (West End, University Heights and South Fairmount), 45204 (Lower Price Hill, Sedamsville, parts of East Price Hill and Riverside), 45206 (Walnut Hills and East Walnut Hills) and 45232 (Spring Grove Village and Winton Hills).
How do we compare with others across the country?
Nationally, 73.7 of counties are at the high level, 16% at the substantial level and 5.8% at the moderate level, according to the CDC. No county in Ohio, Kentucky, or Indiana has a low rate of transmission; only 4.4% of counties nationwide are at this level.
What does it mean to be at higher levels?
The CDC recommends wearing an indoor mask for anyone 2 years of age or older in public in counties with substantial or high transmission or positivity rates of COVID-19 tests – places with at least 50 new ones cases per 100,000 population in the past seven days or a COVID-19 test positive rate of 4.5% or less.
What do the health authorities recommend?
In addition to getting the vaccine, the precautions are what they recommended during most of the pandemic.
- Keep 6 feet away from others outside your home. At home, avoid close contact with sick people.
- Avoid crowds and poorly ventilated spaces.
- Wash your hands often; cover coughs and sneezes. Clean and disinfect frequently touched surfaces daily.
- Monitor your health daily. Watch for fever, cough, shortness of breath, loss of taste / smell, or other symptoms of COVID-19. Take your temperature if symptoms appear.
In Kentucky, health officials further suggested that medically vulnerable people living in red zone counties should avoid social activities with unvaccinated people; organizers of large public events should consider postponing them.
The USA TODAY Network New York team contributed.
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