County hospitals in Hawaii are preparing for a potential surge in COVID patients as cases continue to climb, driven by the extremely virulent Omicron strain.
KIHEI, Hawaii (KITV4) -- A physician at a Maui hospital says it's only a matter of time before the Omicron COVID-19 variant affects his community. To prepare for a potential surge, Maui Memorial Medical Center administrators are already looking for additional staff in case extra help is needed.
"As a health system, we're as prepared as we can be," said Dr. Michael Shea, Maui Memorial Medical Center chief medical director.
There's also strict protocols at the hospital including weekly coronavirus testing for 3% of hospital staff who are not fully vaccinated.
"We've been very tight on visitation. We've been allowing one visitor, vaccinated at a time, only certain hours of the day. We never really relaxed our standards," Shea said.
On the Garden Island, healthcare professionals go through simulation drills of treating COVID-19 patients.
"We practice those scenarios. We have dummies we use in situations like that, and that helps us feel more prepared," Dr. Carol Fujiyoshi, Wilcox Medical Center chief of staff, said. "Everyone has a feeling of confidence, there's some mild anxiety. I think that's normal."
Fujiyoshi reports there's also success with monoclonal antibodies for COVID-19 patients at an early stage.
On the Big Island, Hilo Medical Center is preparing by increasing testing efforts. More than 2,400 COVID-19 test kits were distributed in less than two hours at Hilo Civic Auditorium on Monday.
"We see the numbers skyrocket and it's very concerning. Generally on Oahu, we have to act like it's already here on the Big Island, especially when people are traveling," Elena Cabatu, Hilo Medical Center director of marketing, said.
Each county and facility has its own way to prepare for a potential rise in hospitalization but the message is consistent from everyone: the people who are really in control of the situation are the members of the public themselves.
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