As of April 6, there have been 293 COVID-19 tests conducted across the entire SouthEast Alaska Regional Health Consortium. Clinics across Southeast Alaska are putting together "surge plans" to determine what they should do in the event of an outbreak in their area. An April 7 press release, from SEARHC Marketing Director Maegan Bosak, went into detail about Wrangell's surge plan. While there are no cases of the virus in Wrangell at this time, the plan details what steps the Wrangell Medical Center will take to protect themselves, their patients and the community.
The Wrangell Medical Center began operating at Tier 1 of their surge plan in February. This means they restricted access to the hospital, implementing daily screening of everyone entering the building, doing away with visiting hours, and taking other safety precautions. Tier 2 was implemented upon the first person under investigation, or PUI, being identified in Wrangell. Tier 2 led to further restrictions at the medical center, ventilator education being provided to all doctors and nurses, and the reduction of non-essential therapy services.
"In addition, the construction of doors to isolate the LTC [Long Term Care] wing, introduction of an alternative COVID-19 testing site, and creation of an outdoor triage area were completed as part of the Tier 2 response," the press release reads.
According to the press release, upon the admittance of a confirmed COVID-19 patient to the hospital and with known cases of the virus in the Wrangell community, the medical center will institute Tier 3 of their surge plan. This might require the relocation of Long Term Care residents to alternative, safer sites. The relocation of these elderly residents will provide more space for hospital staff to work, as well as to free up more workers in the event of a surge of patients.
"Available staffing would allow for up to 16 hospital admissions in a surge situation, including the potential creation of an isolated COVID-19 wing," the press release reads. "Surge plans could expand to include up to 24 hospital admissions, but staffing would be less than ideal. As it stands, surge plans would create an immediate need for 2-3 additional staff for both dietary and environmental services, along with the need for six additional nursing staff (three RN, three CNA). Those shortages may require redeployment or enlisting volunteers."
The press release also mentions that the surge plan for Mt. Edgecumbe Medical Center involves utilizing Mt. Edgecumbe High School to house any potential "hospital overflow, mild COVID-19 cases, PUI, and hospital staff." This would allow for patients across Southeast Alaska to be sent to Sitka for care, especially from smaller communities with limited resources.
In the press release, SEARHC Vice President and Hospital Administrator Leatha Merculieff said that the medical center has been very proactive in their response to the virus. They are trying to be as over-prepared as possible, she said. While there are still no cases of the virus in Wrangell, she added, they are not relaxing or taking time to celebrate. The lack of confirmed cases simply means they have more time to accumulate supplies and be prepared. The medical center, and SEARHC, will continue to be as proactive as possible.
Reader Comments(0)