3rd Michigan hospital to get federal help to care for COVID-19, other patients in surge

A third Michigan hospital will be getting additional staffing assistance from the federal government to help care for COVID-19 and other patients as the fourth wave of the pandemic rages, filling hospitals.

The news comes as a health department in the Upper Peninsula issued a public health warning Thursday because of rapidly rising coronavirus cases, and local hospitals and public health facilities facing capacity limits.

Covenant HealthCare in Saginaw will be getting a 22-person medical team to support its doctors and nurses, the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services announced Thursday. Gov. Gretchen Whitmer made the request.

The additional staffing will begin treating patients Dec. 12 and provide support for the following  30 days. The team will include registered nurses, doctors and respiratory therapists.

Last week, the state announced two additional teams began  providing similar support at Beaumont Hospital, Dearborn and Spectrum Health in Grand Rapids.

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It also said last week the health department submitted a request for federal Veterans Affairs hospitals to open beds for civilian transfers. The John D. Dingell Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Detroit is opening beds in an initial agreement that is in place for 30 days and may be extended.

Hospital leaders receiving the additional federal staffing assistance are grateful for the response to help their exhausted workers.

“We are incredibly grateful that the Department of Defense has stepped up to offer their support to our employees and community as we continue our battle against COVID-19," said Kevin Birchmeier, executive vice president/chief operating officer for Covenant HealthCare.

“As the largest acute care hospital in a 20-county region, patients and other hospitals rely on us for care. We take this responsibility very seriously and want to do anything we can to keep our patients, staff and community safe.”

Birchmeier urged residents to support local hospitals by working to slow the spread of the virus and other respiratory illness by wearing a mask, social distancing, avoiding large gatherings, washing hands, getting the flu and COVID-19 vaccines or booster shot and seeking "the right level of care at the right time."

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As of Wednesday, 4,291 Michiganders were hospitalized with COVID-19, according to a state release.

The Michigan Health & Hospital Association data indicates 3 out of 4 COVID-19 patients, or 76%, are unvaccinated; 87% of COVID-19 ICU patients are unvaccinated; and 88% of COVID-19 ventilator patients are not inoculated.

The state said that from Oct. 21 through Nov. 19 people who were not fully vaccinated made up 71% of the 137,472 cases, 72% of the 1,584 hospitalized cases and 76% of the 772 deaths.

The Luce, Mackinac, Alger and Schoolcraft District Health Department, which issued a public health warning, said: "We need a majority of residents following basic mitigation protocols, such as wearing masks and getting vaccinated."

It said the counties, overall, are only 61% fully vaccinated and "we have been advised by one of our local hospitals that they are reaching bed capacity with COVID patients and there is a lack of hospitals to transfer more critically ill patients to."

The health department is advising people to:

• Get  a COVID-19 vaccine or booster.
• Wear a mask in indoor public or crowded spaces.
• Get tested for the virus if you don't feel well or believe you have been exposed.
• Ask your medical care provider about receiving monoclonal antibody treatments if you test positive or have a confirmed exposure.
• Stay home when you are sick, except to receive medical care.

"These are the most basic of public health mitigation strategies. For your own health, your communities, and for local health care, please do these small things. We must work together," according to the health department.

It stated that during the first 16 months of the pandemic — March 2020 through July of this year — the four counties added 2,300 cases and 20 deaths. In the last four months, they have added 2,139 cases and 15 deaths.

Of the 2,139 cases since Aug. 1, 85% have  involved unvaccinated or not fully vaccinated patients. Of the 15 deaths, 13 were unvaccinated or not fully vaccinated patients.

It attributes the rise in cases to the delta variant, as the country braces for the newest variant of concern — omicron. The variant has been confirmed in California and Minnesota, and a Washington Post story states the variant also has been confirmed in New York and Colorado.

There were no confirmed cases of the omicron variant in Michigan on Thursday, said Lynn Sutfin, MDHHS spokesperson.

President Joe Biden on Thursday announced new actions to combat the virus with the emergence of the new variant and heading into the winter months, including boosters for all adults, expanding free, at-home testing and rapid response teams to help battle rising cases.

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Anyone age 5 and older is eligible to be vaccinated, with children ages 5-12 receiving pediatric doses of the Pfizer vaccine.

Fifty-five percent of the state's residents ages 5 and older are fully vaccinated, according to the state's vaccine dashboard. More than 1.4 million additional or booster doses have been administered in Michigan.

Michigan is one of the worst states in the country in terms of COVID-19 cases per 100,000 residents in the last seven days, per the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention COVID-19 data tracker.

Whitmer said she was grateful to federal partners for delivering relief to Michigan's hospitals and health care personnel who have been on the front lines for more than 18 months.

“We know that the vast majority of their patients are unvaccinated or have not yet received a booster dose," she said. "We can all do our part to help reduce the strain on our hospital systems by getting vaccinated, making an appointment to get a booster dose and continuing to take precautions to keep ourselves and loved ones safe. We are in this together.”

MDHHS Director Elizabeth Hertel said the latest surge is "taking a tremendous toll on our health care workers who have already given so much throughout the pandemic."

Residents are being asked to carefully consider where they seek health care, with a primary care office, virtual visit or urgent care being the best choices as hospital and emergency departments are experiencing high demand. However, they should seek care for emergencies, such as stroke symptoms, chest pain, difficulty breathing, significant injuries or uncontrolled bleeding.

Contact Christina Hall: chall@freepress.com. Follow her on Twitter: @challreporter.

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