GRAND RAPIDS, Mich — The time has come when the post-holiday infections have begun, leading to more severe cases needing emergent care.
Corewell Health is seeing an increase in patients with upper respiratory illnesses. That includes influenza, RSV and COVID-19. It has now started putting a strain on the system, says Dr. CJ Gibson, vice president for medical affairs in West Michigan.
As a result, emergency room wait times have increased to "three or four hours, if not longer." Also, some procedures are being delayed.
"When our ICUs get full and our regular floors get full, you can't get anybody out of the ICU until you open up a bed on the regular general medical floors," said Gibson. "You can imagine what that does to backup people that are in the emergency department. They need to get admitted to the hospital, need to get their further levels of care. They can't, because they literally do not have a bed to be placed in."
Gibson said it does not really matter which virus a patient is sick with, but the severity of the symptoms the patient is experiencing.
Right now, he said they are not at pandemic levels of strain. The increase in respiratory illness is "fairly typical," but the hospital is still busier than it is used to. That's because they are seeing an increased amount of people coming in more sick and more advanced in disease.
"It makes it difficult to care for all of the things that we're used to caring for, like chest pain or gunshot wounds or car crashes or diabetes," said Gibson. "All the things that bring people to the ER or the urgent care setting on a normal basis, we have that, plus us all of the upper respiratory illnesses that we're seeing in the community."
Gibson and other doctors are urging people to consider their options when feeling unwell. If it is not an emergent situation, visit a primary care doctor, urgent care or utilize a virtual urgent care. Corewell Health offers a virtual service on its website.
Also, it is not too late to vaccinate against COVID-19 and influenza this season. This may or may not prevent you from contracting the virus, but it will greatly reduce the severity of symptoms, that may land someone in a hospital. Hand washing and staying home when sick can prevent further distribution of illness.
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