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COVID-19 hospitalizations are on the rise again in the Houston area, according to the latest data, a development not conducive to the Thanksgiving holiday approaching.
Daily COVID-19 hospital admissions nearly doubled this week compared to a month ago, Texas Medical Center reported on Friday, reflecting the increased spread of the coronavirus. The number of confirmed cases started to rise a month ago, then climbed to higher levels in the past two weeks.
“It feels like we’re sitting on an explosive, the fuse lit, waiting for it to explode,” said Dr Esmaeil Porsa, president of the Harris Health System, whose safety net hospitals have been overwhelmed for the summer when the spread was out of control in Houston. “Now is the time to sound the alarm, that we are reducing the behaviors that could make us the next El Paso.”
William McKeon, president of Texas Medical Center, added that the COVID-19 hospitalizations are “the ultimate truth, a sign that the spread that began two weeks ago is real. When someone is sick enough to need hospitalization, you can’t hide it.
Executives at the medical center plan to launch a messaging campaign next week, highlighting the need for families to create their own “vacation bubble,” like the one the NBA put in place for the playoffs, McKeon said. Each member of the bubble must assess their risk, get tested before the rally, quarantine themselves before traveling, and wear masks when the trip brings them into contact with people.
The medical center’s COVID-19 reports this week show an average of around 140 new daily COVID-19 admissions among its member hospitals in the region, up from around 100 a week ago and 75 a month ago. The number had remained stable around 75 for a few months before the recent increase.
Executives at the Houston hospital have said doctors and staff are able to handle the growing flow of COVID-19 admissions at this time, but fear the continuing trend could return to levels like those seen in the middle of summer, a period of great strain in the medical center. They noted that the trend has already started in other parts of the state, nation and the world and that projections predict it to reach a crisis point this winter due to cold weather and people moving in. gather inside for the holidays.
Hospitalizations are not the only metric regarding the medical center report. The rate of positive COVID-19 tests in medical center hospitals is now 5.2%, down from 4.4% a week ago and 3.4% a month ago. And the amount of COVID-19 transmission, the so-called Rt rate, remains above 1, the level at which the spread is increasing. The rate is now above this benchmark for about five consecutive weeks, after an extended period in late summer well below 1. An Rt below 1 means that the virus is running out in. a community.
Houston Methodist president Dr Marc Boom said the latest trends had caught his attention “in a big way.”
“The good news this week about the vaccine was to celebrate, a glimpse of the light at the end of the tunnel,” Boom said. “But it’s a much longer tunnel than we would like, certainly several months longer. The way it’s going, it’s gonna be a tough journey through the tunnel. Meanwhile, people have to do whatever they can to keep the virus at bay. “
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