With the added duties of assisting dozens of local and regional patients who have been hospitalized for COVID-19, healthcare workers at Owensboro Health Regional Hospital’s emergency department are being put to the test as they adjust to new normal.
Emergency departments have changed drastically since the start of the pandemic. OHRH has divided its department to keep potential coronavirus patients separated from others, and vehicles have replaced conventional waiting rooms, while triage is now performed in tents outside the ED doors.
Doctors, nurses and other medical staff have also been forced to take extra precautions.
Working with patients in the ED who exhibit symptoms of COVID-19 means there are a lot of hands on deck, and each person tending to a patient is covered in personal protective equipment that includes gloves, a surgical gown, a surgical or N95 mask (often covered by a cloth mask), protective goggles and a face shield.
Becoming exhausted and overheated during these procedures is a common threat that presents a huge risk to nurses.
“There’s a lot that goes on [when a COVID-19 patient comes into the ED],” said Clinical Supervisor Heather Slater. “They are normally sicker, so they need your undivided attention. You can’t really give one nurse a full load like you can with regular medical patients.”
A buddy system was implemented in the ED to ease the pressure on nurses who take care of COVID patients, Slater said. This buddy system teams two nurses up who relieve each other when one becomes too hot or exhausted. It also keeps them accountable when things get overwhelming.
“It’s easy to get caught up in the moment and forget your goggles, so this provides accountability to make sure we’re safe,” Slater said.
Nurses in the ED sometimes have to transport potential COVID-19 patients to the critical care unit themselves. At OHRH, the policy has been to get patients out of the ED and onto the designated COVID-19 floor of the hospital as quickly as possible.
One side effect of the pandemic, Slater said, is the concerning fact that the ED has seen an uptick in other patients seeking emergency care too late — specifically, those with severe chest pains.
Slater said could be because of a fear of contracting the coronavirus, or that people don’t want to overwhelm emergency rooms.
According to OH, this is happening in emergency departments all across the nation.
“We can tell that with volumes across the state too,” said Alysia Adams, Director of Emergency and Trauma Services. “Some people are waiting a little too long to come in. That’s why we want them to still come in. We don’t want them to wait it out at home.”
Adams added that OHRH is taking all the necessary precautions to keep their patients safe and that nobody with severe, sharp chest pains should avoid the hospital because of a fear of contracting COVID-19.
“We definitely don’t want someone with acute chest pain to sit at home or it’s going to get worse,” Slater said.
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The Owensboro Health coronavirus hotline is available 24/7 by calling 877-888-6647. Call the hotline before seeking in-person care. More information from OH can be found here.
For the latest information and data on COVID-19 in Kentucky visit kycovid19.ky.gov or dial the Kentucky state hotline at 800-722-5725.
For the latest health guidelines and resources from the CDC, visit their website here.
