The number of hospitalized covid-19 patients in Arkansas reached a new record high almost every day for the last week.
What does that mean? Let’s dive in. (But first, if you need to brush up on key terms surrounding coronavirus, check out our coronavirus glossary).
The number of hospitalized covid-19 patients each day in the last week was:
• Friday: 706 (breaking a record of 688 set Nov. 2)
• Saturday: 722
• Sunday: 741
• Monday: 786
• Tuesday: 810
• Wednesday: 801
• Thursday: 805
Why the number of hospitalizations matters: Gov. Asa Hutchinson and state Department of Health Secretary Dr. Jose Romero have frequently said hospitalizations are one of the best indicators of the severity of the outbreak in Arkansas.
Testing can’t detect cases among people who are infected but don’t know they need to be tested or who choose not to be tested. By contrast, hospitalizations are hard to miss.
Because the rate of hospitalization is more or less stable, if more people are going to the hospital to be treated for covid-19, health officials infer more people overall are getting infected.
So … are hospitals in danger of hitting capacity?
Meg Mirivel, a spokeswoman for the Arkansas Department of Health, said “the situation is very fluid."
State epidemiologist Dr. Jennifer Dillaha said the state's hospitals are "stretched, very much, and they're having to look at whether or not to implement the surge plan in some places."
A report Thursday from the Arkansas Hospital Association showed that statewide there are 1,097 medical/surgical beds open, 94 adult ICU beds open and 681 ventilators available.
However, the open beds are not evenly distributed across the state. Check out the report for more information.
What do the experts say we should do to reduce hospitalizations?
Romero and the governor consistently recommend three things to prevent the spread of the virus, which in turn prevents hospitalizations:
• Frequent hand washing
• Wearing a mask when around non-household members
• Social distancing — not just maintaining six feet of distance from others in public, but also not interacting with large numbers of people from outside your household
Health officials have also strongly recommended people get a flu shot because a large number of hospitalized flu patients would add to the strain.
Although someone who receives the flu vaccine can still catch the flu, Dillaha, the state epidemiologist, said the vaccine can make illness less severe and help people avoid a hospital stay.