Mat-Su Regional has not yet activated crisis care

MAT-SU — Alaska has reached a new high mark for COVID-19 cases reported in a single day, again.

The Thursday report of 1,285 resident cases is a new record, and 45 additional nonresident cases were also reported. Gov. Mike Dunleavy held a press conference on Wednesday with Department of Health and Social Services Commissioner Adam Crum, Division of Public Health Director Heidi Hedberg and Chief Medical Officer Anne Zink to relay the message to Alaskans that local hospitals are rationing care, reaching crisis standards. At Mat-Su Regional Medical Center, there are 33 people hospitalized as of Thursday with 10 patients requiring ventilators. There are no available Intensive Care Unit beds and 32.4 % of the people hospitalized are hospitalized with COVID.

“Our hospital’s capacity is stretched. Hospital capacity fluctuates throughout the day, based on admissions and discharges and we monitor it continuously as the day progresses,” said MSRMC Director of Marketing and Public Relations Alan Craft.

On Sept. 4, MSRMC became a transfer center for patients from elsewhere around Alaska as Anchorage hospital ICU’s were unable to accept patients. There have now been a total of 101,384 cases of COVID-19 among Alaska residents and 473 deaths attributed to COVID. There are 209 people hospitalized across the state and 34 patients on ventilators. There are just 20 ICU beds available statewide and 20.7 % of the population of hospitalized persons in Alaska are due to COVID. While Commissioner Crum’s addendum to Health Order #1 allowed for hospitals to access committees to determine how to ration care, Craft says that has not yet happened at MSRMC.

“Patients coming to our emergency department are likely to experience longer than typical wait times as more people are turning to us for care. To meet the influx of patients, we have extended our nursing ratios to help mitigate the increased demand on resources. While we have seen record numbers of COVID patients, record numbers of hospitalizations and record numbers of emergency department visits, we have not activated the “crisis standards of care,” said Craft.

There were 145 new cases of COVID-19 reported on Thursday among Mat-Su residents with two additional nonresident cases. There have been a total of 16,156 cases since the start of the pandemic and 68 deaths of Valley residents. Tests are returning with an eight percent positivity. Of the positive tests in the Mat-Su on Thursday, 94 were from the five zip codes attributed to Wasilla, 39 from Palmer, four from Big Lake and “other,” three from Willow and one from Sutton. MSRMC Emergency Department director Dr. Tom Quimby reported in August that the hospital was beginning to experience drug shortages, but Craft said that the only hospital in the Valley is prepared with adequate personal protective equipment, ventilators, and medication for the current delta variant surge currently occurring across the United States.

“The staffing challenges we have experienced are primarily attributed to the sheer volume of patients and the high acuity level of these patients. Where previously our ICU would have patients on average for approximately 6 days, now we are caring for patients in the ICU for 13 days and upwards of 21 days--some even longer,” said Craft.

Across Alaska, 58.3 % of residents above the age of 12 have been fully vaccinated, and 26,822 have received one dose and are awaiting their second dose. In the Mat-Su, 40.7 % of residents are fully vaccinated and 4,123 are awaiting their second dose. Mandates for healthcare employees to have received vaccinations have not been implemented, and are not contributing to the shortage of healthcare workers that is plaguing hospitals across the state. Craft said that he is uncertain whether any of the 470 General Services Administration employees who will begin arriving in Alaska on September 27 will be stationed at MSRMC.

“Mat-Su Regional Medical Center has strongly encouraged employees to be vaccinated but has not made vaccination mandatory. For any hospital and clinic staff who are not vaccinated, we have recently implemented routine COVID-19 testing as an additional safety precaution,” said Craft. “We are extremely proud of the way our staff has met this challenge head-on. The teamwork and commitment to patient care has been inspiring. The surge of COVID patients has taxed the entire healthcare delivery network. Our physicians, nurses, clinical staff, support staff--many are tired--but their commitment to our patients, our community and to each other has been a constant throughout this pandemic.”