As COVID cases and hospitalizations continue to climb in Tennessee, Maury Regional Health (MRH) is experiencing the impact, according to Interim CEO and Chief Medical Officer Martin Chaney, MD. The new surge of cases is affecting Wayne County and Wayne Medical Center as well.
“On January 20, Maury Regional Health had 91 COVID inpatients in our hospitals and, given the increasing numbers of patients presenting in our primary care practices, urgent care facilities and emergency departments across the system, we anticipate that number will continue to climb. Predictive modeling indicates that this wave of COVID isn’t expected to peak in our region until around the first of February,” said Dr. Chaney.
In Wayne County, the seven-day average daily case rate is 180.8 per 100,000 residents per day and the percentage positive for those who are tested is 32.3%. According to Dr. Chaney, the actual rate is likely much higher because many individuals forego testing or may use an at-home test that is not reported to the Department of Health.
Hospitalizations in Tennessee have increased 174% in the past four weeks for all patient populations. During that same time period, pediatric COVID inpatients increased 535% and COVID patients requiring ICU care increased 91%. Of the 91 hospitalized patients at Maury Regional Health, 14% are in ICU.
“COVID fatigue has resulted in community members letting down their guard and gathering in close, indoor group settings without masking,” said Dr. Chaney. “While the omicron variant hasn’t yet resulted in as many hospitalizations as the delta variant, it is important to understand that omicron is comparable to the original strain of COVID in regards to the risk for severe disease and hospitalization. We should all take measures to help reduce the rapid spread of the omicron variant through our community to avoid endangering our vulnerable neighbors, friends and family members.”
Dr. Chaney adds, “When community transmission is high, it impacts the entire region, from our patients to our healthcare team and their families. We are experiencing longer wait times in many of our facilities as a result this COVID surge — as well as flu and other illnesses — and ask that the community be patient as we strive to serve their health care needs. We also encourage everyone to be more diligent in masking and social distancing for at least the next few weeks until we reach the peak of this latest surge.”
