Page 4 - Healthcare News August 2021

Crowd Control
As Delta Variant Lingers, Hospitals MGird for an Uncertain Fall
By JOSEPH BEDNAR
ore than 18 months into the pan- demic, not much about COVID-19
surprises doctors anymore, but this coming fall — with schools and colleges welcoming students back, concerts and large gatherings ramping up, and the Delta variant still raging
— still poses some uncertainty. strain of coronavirus by far, has resulted in And Dr. Robert Roose says the medical increased infections and positivity rates both
community is ready. statewide and locally.
“We’ve been in a constant state of readiness “We’re watching the numbers the Depart-
since January of 2020, and we’ve shown the ment of Public Health is putting out and ability to pivot when needed to keep our pa- keeping our ear to the ground with current tients safe and our community healthy,” said trends,” said Colleen Desai, vice president Roose, chief medical officer at Mercy Medical of Patient Care Services and chief Nursing Center. “That meant responding with changes officer at Holyoke Medical Center. “We’re
in protocols and policies when appropriate, certainly in tune with what’s happening across and being flexible and innovative with how the nation and, more importantly, what’s hap- we deliver care. As we think about this fall, it’s pening across our state.
just a continued state of preparedness.” “ And there’s reason for caution, he said,
as the Delta variant, currently the dominant
As we think about this fall, it’s just a continued state of preparedness.”
4 WWW.HEALTHCARENEWS.COM AUGUST 2021