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More than 2,000 health care workers deployed to support hospitals; Dr. Ezike says we haven’t yet moved past peak

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* A.D. Quig at Crain’s

Amid record-breaking hospitalizations during the omicron wave, Gov. J.B. Pritzker announced today that 2,048 health care workers have been deployed across the state; 919 are on-site supporting hospitals hit hard by COVID. Another 552 will arrive at hospitals by next Friday. Another 577 are part of “reaction teams” that will respond quickly to overwhelmed hospitals this week and next.

“Even more personnel are being made available to individual hospitals” asking for federal assistance. FEMA-provided personnel are helping hospitals in Rockford. “The vast majority of serious illnesses and deaths are among the unvaccinated,” Pritzker said.

Health workers from out of state will continue to be allowed to work in Illinois hospitals, Pritzker said at a press conference today. He announced initiatives to ease the strain at Illinois hospitals: Doctors who received medical training in another country will be allowed to provide assistance to licensed physicians. And out-of-state physicians, nurses and mental-health providers will be allowed to perform telehealth work if there is a pre-existing relationship between the provider and the patient.

* Heather Cherone at WTTW

Dr. Ngozi Ezike, director of the Illinois Department of Public Health, said the state would pay a premium for the additional workers under contracts in place to ensure that hospitals have adequate staff.

Many health care workers have quit, exhausted by a pandemic that is on the verge of entering its third year, while others are in isolation because they contracted COVID-19, Ezike said.

“We are pulling on every lever,” Ezike said. “Records have been smashed.”

* More…


"It's too soon to tell" if we've reached the peak of the omicron surge, IDPH Commissioner Ngozi Ezike says. "Unfortunately, right now, today, the hospitals are bearing the brunt." 9% of hospital ICU beds are available right now.

— A.D. Quig (@ad_quig) January 12, 2022

To declare if we've moved past the peak of omicron, there need to be consistent days of declines. Dr. Ezike says she's "crossing her fingers and toes" and she'd let the public know when we've surpassed the peak.

— A.D. Quig (@ad_quig) January 12, 2022

"You really want to see a consistent drop" before proclaiming an end to the surge, Ezike says.
"I'll be the first" to trumpet it, she adds

— Heather Cherone (@HeatherCherone) January 12, 2022

A significant number of healthcare staff "have left the profession" Ezike said, discussing a call with hospital leaders across IL. In addition, many staff have to isolate or quarantine, reducing the number of staffed beds.

— A.D. Quig (@ad_quig) January 12, 2022

* WSIL

Currently in Region 5, most of southern Illinois, 5 ICU beds of a total 74 staffed beds are available. Region 5 has seen 9 days of COVID-19 patient increases, with 147 individuals currently hospitalized.

posted by Rich Miller
Wednesday, Jan 12, 22 @ 4:19 pm

Comments

  1. ===that 2,048 health care workers have been deployed across the state===

    I would like to know more about what this means. Who are these healthcare workers and where did they come from?

    What’s the pandemic like in the areas they would have been serving back in January of 2020?

    Comment by Candy Dogood Wednesday, Jan 12, 22 @ 6:21 pm

  2. It sounds like they are being provided bt FEMA.

    Comment by Captain Obvious Wednesday, Jan 12, 22 @ 7:46 pm

  3. ===It sounds like they are being provided by FEMA.===

    They didn’t appear out of thin air.

    Comment by Candy Dogood Wednesday, Jan 12, 22 @ 8:51 pm

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