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MARIETTA -- The Memorial Health System in Marietta has seen a substantial increase in COVID-19 cases in the last few weeks with patients from both Ohio and West Virginia, officials said.
Memorial currently has 56 COVID patients; 10 of which are ventilated, said Jennifer Offenberger, Associate VP, Service Excellence for Memorial Health System.
Around 75-80 percent of the remaining patients are receiving high flow oxygen to prevent them from needing a ventilator, she added.
Around 90 percent of the current COVID-19 patients at Memorial are unvaccinated.
"In our region of Ohio our inpatient census is at the highest point since Dec. 30, 2020, with a 59.8 percent increase in the last seven days," Offenberger said.
The surge is putting a strain on Memorial's health system resources, especially health care workers who have been dealing with the pandemic for the past 18 months.
"This latest surge requires us to evaluate our resources daily to ensure we have beds available, staffing and how we are managing the influx of patients," Offenberger said crediting the dedication of the staff with maintaining care.
There have been times when they have diverted patients, but it has been minimal, she said, adding they are continuing to care for those needing immediate emergent care for things like stroke, trauma and other serious needs.
They are also urging people not to put off care. If problems arise, Memorial continues to triage patients to determine the severity of their symptoms.
Memorial does a daily morning call with hospitals and health systems in central and southeastern Ohio to check the availability of resources including if certain patients will need higher levels of care, Offenberger said.
Out of the 17 facilities in southeast Ohio, nine are reporting zero ICU beds and seven are reporting zero medical surgical beds.
"At Marietta Memorial, we have 100 percent of our ICU beds full," Offenberger said.
They currently have patients on ventilators in other nursing units that traditionally would have been served in their ICU.
Due to large numbers of COVID patients at hospitals around the region they do not have the ability to send patients elsewhere, officials said.
Currently, Memorial is seeing a high number of people in their emergency department. People who need a COVID test are urged to contact their primary care provider or seek one of the at-home tests available at local pharmacies.
Memorial is monitoring the status of elective procedures daily. Many elective procedures are done on an outpatient basis.
"Now we evaluate surgeries requiring an inpatient hospital bed and continue to meet the needs of our patients," Offenberger said.
Memorial officials are urging people to get vaccinated to stem the tide as well as urging people to wear a mask and maintain proper social distancing.
"Vaccination is the best defense in preventing hospitalizations and it is the best way we can support our frontline caregivers at this critical time," Offenberger said. "The vaccine will help your body fight the virus if you are exposed and help prevent the spread of the virus to those around you.
"The vaccines greatly reduce your chance of getting really sick if you get COVID-19. If you do get sick, your risk of needing to go to the hospital or dying is also lower for all know virus variants, including the Delta variant."