COLUMBUS — Columbus Regional Health is asking for the community to help slow the spread of COVID-19 as they continue to see "surge after surge" and staffing strains.
The hospital is running at a very high capacity and dealing with staffing strains due to fatigue, illness, or employees quarantining, Kelsey DeClue, public relations coordinator for the hospital, said to WRTV in an email.
An average of about one-fourth to one-third of the hospital's inpatient population for the last several weeks had COVID-19, DeClue said.
While patients without COVID-19 won't be turned away from Columbus Regional Health, some patients may need care at other health systems, DeClue said.
Indiana communities are at a critical point and healthcare workers need help from the public to slow the spread.
"People are getting very ill," DeClue said. "Hospitalizations are on the rise and often times the level of care required is quite intense. This is serious. We must be diligent to keep masking and social distance when around others, stay home as much as possible. Our healthcare workers are here for you. Please be there for them."
