Photo submitted to Times Observer A new sign directs visitors and patients around Warren General Hospital.

COVID cases are up.

Other hospitalizations are up.

Transfers are delayed.

Regional hospitals, including Warren General, are busy.

“Warren General is currently operating at our full capacity,” Chief Nursing Officer Joe Akif said. “We are seeing a continued high census with COVID inpatients. In addition, our medical inpatients are also high.”

“All hospitals are seeing high census related to acutely ill medical patients, not just COVID,” Akif said. “Regionally Meadville and Titusville are seeing the largest impacts with COVID related patients.”

While there aren’t as many COVID patients as there were during the surge in November, December, and January, that surge didn’t correspond with a high number of non-COVID inpatients.

“With regards to the current surge in COVID patients, we did not have the high medical census during the first wave of COVID that we currently have,” Akif said. “This high census challenge also impacts surgeries. If a surgery is not emergent, it may be postponed due to no inpatient beds being available.”

“Transfer to area hospitals as well as skilled nursing facilities in our areas, is placing a large burden on the hospital,” he said. “As a result, patients are seeing delayed times in our Emergency Department due to a full inpatient status and regional hospitals not taking transfers for up to four days.”

” We are planning daily, and at times hourly, to assure that the most ill patients are getting the care that they need,” Akif said. “We appreciate the community’s patience, as pretty much all healthcare facilities are experiencing high census.”

COVID STATS

There have been 100 new COVID cases reported in Warren County in the last five days – nearly half of them reported Tuesday.

The Pennsylvania Department of Health reported 48 new cases on Tuesday, bringing the county’s total to 4,368. Of those, 3,576 are confirmed and 792 probable.

There have also been three more deaths added to the toll since Thursday. There have been 138 COVID-related deaths of county residents.

A total of 2,303 county residents have received booster shots on top of their full vaccines. New vaccinations continue to rise slowly, with 2,464 people partially vaccinated and 15,886 fully vaccinated, according to the Department of Health. Those numbers reflect increases of 94 full vaccinations and 141 partial vaccinations reported in the last five days. In that same time, there have been 668 boosters given.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention show different numbers of vaccines – 5,026 partially vaccinated and 17,570 fully vaccinated. According to the department, vaccinations administered outside of Pennsylvania are not captured in the department’s data.

According to the CDC numbers, 44.8 percent of the county population is fully vaccinated and 57.7 percent is at least partially vaccinated. The department’s numbers indicate 40.5 percent fully vaccinated and 46.8 percent at least partially vaccinated.

On Tuesday, the department announced that 72.5 percent of the state population ages 18 and older have been fully vaccinated. The county’s rate, according to CDC, is 53.1 percent. About 20 percent of the county population is less than 18 years old.