Providence St. Mary works to deal with overcrowding and under staffing
By Terry Murry on Tuesday, July 27th, 2021 in Columbia Basin News More Top Stories
WALLA WALLA – The following is a message from Walla Walla County Health Officer Dr. Daniel Kaminsky that was posted on Facebook by Commissioner Greg Tompkins:
Providence St. Mary Medical Center is often at or over capacity and is seeing record high numbers of people in its Emergency Department. At the same time, the hospital also is facing staffing challenges. This is a consistent trend being seen at hospitals across the state and nation – a shortage of health care workers combined with the fallout from the pandemic. Our communities are experiencing higher rates of illnesses, exacerbated chronic conditions, substance abuse issues and behavioral health needs.
The rise of more infectious COVID-19 variants has left Walla Walla’s unvaccinated population particularly vulnerable and is driving numerous infections requiring medical care. Locally, COVID-19 hospitalizations are predominately among people who have not yet been fully vaccinated.
People in this area continue to have access to quality medical care. However, the public may wish to be aware of the following:
- Emergency Department waits often span multiple hours unless the condition is life threatening. Providence St. Mary is asking people not to go the Emergency Room unless they are having a medical emergency such as heart attack, stroke, trouble breathing, severe bone breaks, etc. Urgent Care is available for same-day care that is not an emergency. Waits at Urgent Care also may span many hours.
- Emergency Room patients who need to be hospitalized may have extended waits before an inpatient bed becomes available.
- There is a higher likelihood of being air transferred to another facility, particularly for an intensive care bed. Because other hospitals are experiencing the same challenges as Providence St. Mary, the receiving hospital may be at a significant distance if one is available at all. Air transport is extraordinarily expensive for the patient, but its use is often unavoidable in an emergency.
- Non-emergency surgeries or services sometimes need to be rescheduled due to staff or bed availability.
Providence St. Mary is working to address these challenges and appreciates the community’s patience and understanding.
