Coronavirus in Florida: Palm Beach hospitals prep as caseload continues to climb
With coronavirus cases continuing to spiral to record levels, at least three hospitals in Palm Beach County have stopped some elective surgeries to reserve beds that may be needed to treat a surge of COVID-19 patients.
Bethesda Hospital East and West, both in Boynton Beach, and Boca Raton Regional Hospital are "temporarily rescheduling elective procedures," spokesman Michael Maucker said. The three hospitals, owned by Baptist Health South Florida, are rescheduling surgeries that require overnight stays, he said.
St. Mary’s Medical Center is again pre-screening patients at a tent outside its campus on 45th Street in West Palm Beach. A spokesman for Tenet Health, which operates it and four other medical centers in the county, said there are no plans to cancel elective surgeries.
On Wednesday, as the number of cases nationally surpassed 3 million, cases statewide continued to climb.
In Palm Beach County, an additional 593 people were added to the growing caseloads. The county has notched 18,231 cases since the pandemic began sweeping the state in March.
During the past week, a record-setting 3,784 new people have been diagnosed with the disease in Palm Beach County.
Fueled by rapid rises in Florida, Texas, California and Arizona, the nation has had more than 50,000 new cases five times in the past seven days, according to the COVID Tracking Project, which bases its figures on state reports.
Hospitals in South Florida continued to gird for the upswing in cases to translate into more patients seeking life-saving assistance.
JFK Medical Center said it is temporarily closing its free-standing emergency rooms in Boynton Beach to “shift critical staff and resources to our other campuses to help combat the COVID-19 outbreak.” Its one in Palm Beach Gardens closed in March.
While 27 percent of regular hospital beds are empty throughout the county, the number of intensive care beds are filling up, according to state hospital regulators.
There were none empty at JFK Medical Center North Campus in West Palm Beach or at Lakeside Medical Center in Belle Glade, state records show.
At Wellington Regional Medical Center, two of its 32 intensive care beds are empty while Bethesda West only has one of its nine beds available. At St. Mary’s, three of its 25 beds are empty.
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State officials don’t say whether the beds are being used by COVID-19 patients or others who are seriously ill.
Researchers at Florida International University reported that 611 people were being treated Monday at county hospitals for the highly contagious respiratory disease. That is a 24 percent jump from the 493 who were being treated on June 30.
Of those hospitalized, 121 were in ICUs and more than half, 72, were on ventilators.
“There have been record highs obtained for hospitalizations,” the researchers said, referring to Palm Beach, Broward and Miami-Dade counties. “This represents a major concern for area hospital capacity.”
Hospitals in Miami-Dade County, which leads the state in the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases, canceled most elective surgeries last week. A hospital spokesman said beds were available but the growing caseloads were straining its nursing staff.
Throughout the pandemic, the state has refused to say how many people are hospitalized with COVID-19 on any given day. Instead, it gives a running total of how many have been treated since the pandemic began.
Doctors are concerned. The Palm Beach County Medical Society announced it would begin a media campaign to encourage people infected by the coronavirus not to run to the hospital unless they are experiencing serious symptoms, including having trouble breathing, confusion and persistent chest pain.
“Cooperation from every single citizen is absolutely critical in order for us to get a handle on this escalating crisis,” said Ivy Faske, president of Palm Beach County Medical Society Services. “If everyone who tests positive for COVID-19 runs to the hospital, beds will quickly run out and we won’t be able to care for the most crucially ill.”
jmusgrave@pbpost.com
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