Flood of COVID-19 patients forces a SC hospital system to stop elective surgeries
One hospital system in South Carolina announced it is temporarily stopping all elective surgeries as it deals with an “unrelenting flood of COVID-19 patients.”
As of 12:01 a.m. Tuesday, Roper St. Francis Healthcare will suspend all elective, non-urgent cases, hospital spokesman Andy Lyons said in a news release.
A massive rise in the number of coronavirus patients being treated at Roper’s four Charleston-area hospitals in less than two weeks prompted the healthcare system to make the move.
The Lowcountry hospitals reported they went from 46 COVID-19 inpatients on June 29 to nearly triple that number on July 10, when 131 coronavirus patients were being cared for. COVID-19 patients made up 37 percent of all of Roper St. Francis’ inpatients, according to the release.
The elective cases are being suspended to ensure the healthcare system has enough staff members to take care of patients in addition to enough beds to care for them, according to the release.
“The unrelenting flood of COVID-19 patients combined with the number of teammates exposed or infected with COVID-19 are presenting unprecedented staffing challenges,” Lyons said in the release.
Information on the number of Roper St. Francis employees who have tested positive for the coronavirus was not available.
“The rate of increase in our COVID-19 inpatients demands this immediate and impactful response,” Dr. Chris McLain, chief physician officer with Roper St. Francis Healthcare, said in a news release. “Roper St. Francis Healthcare is here to serve the community. We are asking that you do your part to prevent infection.”
Among the precautions McLain is urging people to take includes wearing a mask, frequent hand washing, social distancing, cleaning and disinfecting surfaces, and monitoring their health.
Roper St. Francis said it will continue to perform “emergent cases and urgent and those that are ‘life-and-limb threatening.’ ”
“We recognize that the majority of our surgeries, while labeled elective, are necessary, and we are doing our best to balance caring for our patients with the available remaining staff,” Lyons said in the release.
Through Sunday, there were 56,485 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in South Carolina, according to the Department of Health and Environmental Control. Charleston County has reported a state-high 7,552 positive tests, and 1,527 more have been confirmed in neighboring Dorchester County.
Roper St. Francis has facilities in both counties, including Roper Hospital, Bon Secours St. Francis Hospital, Roper St. Francis Berkeley Hospital, and Roper St. Francis Mount Pleasant Hospital.
Across South Carolina, 7,721 hospital beds are in use, including 1,472 that are occupied by patients who have either tested positive or are under investigation for COVID-19, according to DHEC. The statewide hospital bed utilization rate is at 72%, with health officials saying 2,890 inpatient hospital beds are available.
This story was originally published July 13, 2020 at 9:05 AM.
