Covid-19 inpatient numbers show “tremendous progress” in the last few weeks

MARSHFIELD, Wis. (WSAW) - COVID-19 inpatient numbers decrease by over 25% according to Chief Medical Officer Dr. William Melms at Marshfield Clinic Health System.

“Right now, at this moment, we are still in the Delta surge. But our numbers on the inpatient side are coming down and we are very optimistic that they’ll continue to do so,” said Dr. William Melms, chief medical officer.

He added that there is now some space in the hospitals’ units. But in Mid-November of 2020, when the first surge was peaking, the entire Marshfield Health System had about 160 inpatients. And at the peak of the Delta surge, there were about 85 inpatients. Despite numbers being significantly lower, staffing is still an issue.

“Although given our staffing limitations it was still putting a great deal of pressure on our system,” said Dr. Melms.

Luckily, lower numbers of people to care for provide some relief. But, that doesn’t mean they’re in the clear.

“If we go back to June of this year, we were very optimistic, our numbers were way down. Our percent positivity in the lab was way down. We were hopeful that we were out of the surge at that point and then Delta occurred,” said Dr. Melms.

He had advice for preventing another influx in the hospital. He said people are less likely to become hospitalized, be in the intensive care unit and be on a ventilator if they get the COVID-19 vaccine. When I asked based on COVID trends what he suspects for the future, here’s what he said.

“The question is, what comes next. Hopefully, nothing comes next,” said Dr. Melms.