New Orleans medical facilities brace for Hurricane Ida in the middle of Covid-19 rise

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New Orleans hospitals brace for Hurricane Ida amid Covid-19 surge

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Hospitals in New Orleans are bracing for public health emergency situations on 2 fronts as Hurricane Ida threatens to strike at the exact same time as Louisiana is experiencing a rise in coronavirus cases.

New Orleans remains in the middle of a “severe outbreak” with a seven-day average of 220 brand-new infections, according to the city’s Covid-19 control panel. Across the state, more than 3,400 brand-new cases were validated since Friday, according to the Louisiana Department ofHealth At least 2,684 individuals are hospitalized in Louisiana with Covid-19

Last month, Louisiana struck the greatest single-day boost of Covid-19 hospitalizations because the pandemic’s start with 6,800 brand-new cases in a single day, the second-highest single-day case count becauseJan 6, 2021.

“Once again we find ourselves dealing with a natural disaster in the midst of a pandemic,” statedDr Jennifer Avengo, New Orleans public health director. “Our plea and our hope is that everyone will prepare for both very seriously and very thoroughly.”

Avengo included that homeowners still have time to get their very first dosage of the Covid-19 vaccine if they have actually refrained from doing so currently. Unvaccinated homeowners represent 90 percent of brand-new infections tape-recorded in betweenAug 12 and 18, and 91 percent of existing hospitalizations, according to the state health department.

“We urge you to do that to give yourself that extra protection,” Avengo stated. “If you are vaccinated, thank you.”

Ida had optimal continual winds of 80 miles per hour with greater gusts Friday night as it passed over western Cuba, according to the National HurricaneCenter The storm will move into the Gulf of Mexico Saturday.

The storm is anticipated to knock the northern Gulf Coast as a Category 4 storm on Sunday with optimum winds of 140 miles per hour, according to forecasters — 16 years to the day after Hurricane Katrina hit Louisiana as a destructive Category 3 storm.

Health care systems throughout New Orleans are currently putting contingency strategies in location, consisting of boosting staffing, buying a surplus of products and lessening the quantity of clients who are confessed to medical facilities with non-emergencies.

“We definitely were in full disaster mode and getting ready for this storm,” stated Warner Thomas, president and CEO of Ochsner Health.

Ochsner has actually purchased 10 days worth of food, medication and medical products, Thomas stated.

“This is just something that, being in Louisiana, we’re used to and we’re in that mode today,” he stated.

At LCMC Health, the health center will go into a “code gray lockdown” early Sunday early morning and generate extra personnel to look after clients. Staff and clients will shelter in location however have actually not been purchased to leave yet, statedDr Jeffrey Elder, medical director for emergency situation management.

Additionally, physicians and nurses have actually been informed to get ready for a high volume of clients in the middle of the Covid-19 rise.

“We’ve trained for this,” Elder stated. “We’ve prepared for it.”

With warm water temperature levels in the Gulf anticipated to magnify the storm, New Orleans might take an especially bad hit. The city’s mayor, LaToya Cantrell, purchased compulsory evacuations Friday for homeowners in low-lying locations beyond the city’s levee system. She likewise required voluntary evacuations inside the levee system.

In the years because Hurricane Katrina ravaged parts of the city, New Orleans medical facilities discovered important lessons about how to prepare for future crises, Elder stated. This consists of much better hardening of structures and getting ready for loss of power and water.

“Our hospitals are in a much better place than they were pre-Katrina,” Elder stated. “We’re rated for higher intensity hurricanes and really are ready to shelter in place … to keep patients safe, keep our staff safe, and then just ride out the storm.”