Holy Family Memorial and Aurora Medical Center-Manitowoc County are part of a nine member hospital group in northeastern Wisconsin preparing for COVID-19 patients.
Tom Veeser, Chief Nursing Officer & Vice-President in charge of Quality at HFM, said he won’t discuss the total number of patients hospitalized in the region from the virus, but did confirm one of the three people confirmed to have the coronavirus in Manitowoc County has been hospitalized and is listed in stable condition in critical care.
The other two confirmed cases are in self-quarantine.
Veeser says once a test is given they don’t know if the person is positive for 1 to 3-days adding medical personnel treat everybody with a pattern of symptoms as if they have the virus until they prove they don’t.
He stated the biggest limitation is the lack of testing equipment available to them. Veeser explains 80% of those found to have COVID-19 can go home to be quarantined and 20% are hospitalized, with 5% of those patients on ventilators.
The HFM official says the northeastern hospital group has over 100 ventilators on hand and are not in danger of running short.
Meanwhile, Veeser says Holy Family Memorial and other hospitals have stopped performing elective surgeries & diagnostic procedures and stopped clinic visits. The significantly lower volume allows them to redirect doctors and other staff while some of their employees have elected to take a short leave-of-absence due to health concerns.
He stated Manitowoc and other northeastern Wisconsin communities have done a good job of social distancing with recommended guidelines from local health departments.
Tom Veeser said he’s “cautiously optimistic we’re at the top of the curve for the virus and will continue to watch the numbers as it flattens out.”
