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COVID: Riverside County Reaches 100% Usage of Licensed ICU Beds, But What Does That Mean?

July 10, 2020

Riverside County on Friday reached 100% usage of its licensed intensive care unit beds but hospitals can still treat new critical patients, officials said.

County spokeswoman Brooke Federico said the metric accounts for the 385 licensed ICU beds at 17 hospitals across the county.

"Ten out of 17 hospitals are either at or above 100% capacity of licensed ICU beds," she said. "These hospitals are converting traditional beds into ICU beds. The remaining seven hospitals are below their licensed ICU capacity."

Across the county, a total of 526 patients are hospitalized with COVID-19, according to Jose Arballo Jr., senior public information specialist Riverside University Health System-Public Health.

About 74% of the county's overall bed capacity is in use, he added.

Rep. Raul Ruiz, D-Palm Desert, expressed concern Friday night about the increase in ICU bed occupancy.

"The bottleneck, I'm afraid, is not going to be how many leftover ventilators we have to still use," Ruiz said. "It's going to be the exhausted and burnt-out doctors and nurses and the limited amount of respiratory therapists that we have to utilize those ventilators and to provide the ICU-type care that a severely sick individual needs."

More than 210 of the county's 475 ventilators are also in use, although it's unclear how many beds and ventilators are being used for patients who tested positive for COVID-19.

The announcement came on the same day health officials reported 1,431 new cases of COVID-19 and four additional virus-related deaths. The increase marks the county's highest single day increase of confirmed cases since testing began in March.

To date, 24,765 cases and 537 coronavirus-related deaths have been reported.

Despite the increased usage in ICU beds, hospitals maintain the capability of operating beyond their licensed capacities, a Riverside County emergency services official noted earlier this week.

Emergency Management Department Director Bruce Barton said Tuesday that the jump in patient caseloads prompted a half dozen hospitals countywide to switch to "surge plans" to accommodate the influx.

"We have six hospitals that are over capacity," Barton said during a Board of Supervisors meeting. "They are using their surge plans. But that's not the same thing as being overwhelmed. They are not overwhelmed. They still have the capacity."

Barton said on Tuesday that 135 individuals who tested positive for the virus had been admitted to intensive care units.

Barton noted that all of the hospitals have the capability of operating beyond their licensed capacities — a point that has been emphasized repeatedly. Last week, he told the board that most or all of the medical facilities can add 30% more bed space on short notice to facilitate patients.

"There has been a vigorous and robust planning effort (in preparation) for a surge," Barton said. "Some hospitals are deeper into it than others. It's all about their internal capacity."

He said hospitals have the option to switch to over-capacity operations well in advance of actually being inundated with patients, be they COVID-19 cases or others.

Across the valley, hospitals on Saturday reported how many coronavirus patients were being treated and other statistics on ICU usage.

Tenet Healthcare spokesperson Todd Burke said Desert Regional Medical Center in Palm Springs has 31 licensed ICU beds and 42 patients requiring ICU level of care, which means the hospital has activated its surge plan.

The hospital reported 82 positive COVID-19 patients, 16 of whom are in ICU, he said.

Three-hundred total beds were in use, he added. The hospital is licensed for 385 beds.

At JFK Memorial Hospital in Indio, 15 of the 16 licensed ICU beds were in use, according to Burke. Thirty-four patients are hospitalized for the virus, including seven in the ICU.

The hospital is licensed for 145 beds, with 104 in use.

Burke said the hospitals have the ability to add additional ICU beds as part of a surge plan.

At Eisenhower Health in Rancho Mirage, spokeswoman Lee Rice said the hospital had a 34-bed ICU capacity, with 24 in use. Eleven of the beds were used for coronavirus patients.

The hospital's current capacity is around 350 due to some beds being out of service, including 76 beds because the floor is under construction for a future obstetrics unit.

About 270 patients were in the hospital as of Friday, she said.

Ruiz on Friday said he hoped county leaders would come together and inform the public of a surge intervention plan and how it will be enforced. "We must take local matters into our local hands and implement what we need to do to stop this surge," he said.

Ruiz also expressed concern for what hospitals may experience in fall and winter if they have to deal with the coronavirus and other respiratory illnesses such as the flu, bronchitis and common cold.

Ruiz urged individuals to stay at home as much as possible and refrain from gathering in large groups. If people need to leave home for essential errands, they need to wear face coverings and maintain social distancing, he said.

As to the reasons for the significant rise in coronavirus-related hospitalizations — which are up 130% compared to a month ago — Barton on Tuesday could not "pin down any one thing."

"Could be a number of reasons ... like the protests we've had," the EMD director said. "It's hard to have a crystal ball."

According to Barton, the EMD and other county agencies are assisting hospitals by every means possible, including masks for staff.

The county has come into possession of 2 million N95 masks, and another million are expected to be available for distribution by the end of the month, Barton said.

The county received $431 million in federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief & Economic Security — CARES — Act funding for acquisitions.