AURORA, IL — The leaders of Aurora’s two biggest hospitals have urged the city’s residents to practice social distancing and other safety measures to limit the coronavirus’ strain on health care resources, with both reporting they have been operating at peak levels for several weeks.
During a Facebook chat Thursday with Aurora Mayor Richard Irvin, Rush Copley Medical Center CEO John Diederich said he thought the number of people needing medical care due to the coronavirus may have peaked around Easter. But a week later, the hospital’s coronavirus caseload spiked to about 60 patients, including 11 members of two families that gathered for the holiday, Diederich said.
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Since the middle of April, the number of Rush Copley patients who tested positive has hovered between 50 and 60, with 54 in the hospital and five on ventilators, as of Thursday, Diederich said.
“We’re still at a peak point at Rush Copley,” Diederich said. “Every time I think that we’re going to see the curve coming down, we hit another peak.”
AMITA Mercy Medical Center CEO Richard Roehr said his hospital also saw “peaks and valleys” after confirming its first coronavirus case March 10, followed by a spike after Easter. As of Thursday, AMITA’s Aurora facility is treating 39 patients who have tested positive for the coronavirus and five are on ventilators, Roehr said.
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Both hospitals have access to a large amount of resources, including protective gear and ventilators, through their health systems, Diederich and Roehr said. Forty-nine ventilators are available for patients at Rush Copley, a spokesperson said Friday.
Rush Copley has treated 551 coronavirus patients and 17 have died, while Mercy has treated about 280 so far, with 19 deaths, according to the hospitals’ leaders.
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Though both hospitals have seen large drops in the number of patients they are admitting — with many afraid of being exposed to the coronavirus — those who do seek medical services for a variety of ailments are waiting longer than they should, Roehr said.
“By the time they come, they’re already very sick,” Roehr said. Sicker patients usually require longer hospital stays, which put a greater strain on health care resources, the hospital leaders said, encouraging people to seek help when they feel they need it.
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“The hospital is one of the safest places in the community to be” due to the amount of safety protocols that have been implemented, Diederich said.
The two hospital executives predicted the coronavirus will continue to put a strain on health care resources for the foreseeable future.
“I don’t see this going away any time soon,” Roehr said, adding a coronavirus vaccine must be made widely available before large gatherings can be held safely.
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Diederich pleaded with residents not to get “lazy” about following public health orders, like staying home, practicing social distancing and wearing masks.
“We need to remember, we’re all in this together. We’re all working together,” Diederich said, urging people to “help each other and pick each other up in these strange times.”
The easiest way for people to support health care workers is to follow safety guidelines from state and federal health officials, Roehr said.
Residents’ adherence to those recommendations “is going to determine how long this is going to last,” Roehr said. “We’ve got to do the work today to get there tomorrow.”
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