Hospitals urge free COVID-19 testing sites, reserve ER visits for emergencies

LEXINGTON, Ky. (WTVQ) – Hospital leaders in Lexington say they’re seeing a surge in patients without COVID-19 symptoms wanting to get tested, and that’s putting a strain on emergency departments.

UK HealthCare, Baptist Health and CHI St. Joseph healthcare leaders spoke with reporters Friday about the concern.

Colleen Swartz, VP of Operations at UK HeatlhCare, talked about the impact on health systems saying emergency departments are, “Fairly overrun right now, the hospitals are very, very busy.”

Swartz says they’re seeing increased volumes in ER visits, solely for the reason of testing, with patients who are not presenting any COVID-19 symptoms.

A similar scene at CHI Saint Joseph Hospital. Dr. Mark Sloan, Medical Director in the Department of Emergency Medicine, says they’ve seen a 10-15% increase in daily volume in, “asymptomatic, curious patients” in the last few weeks.

Right now, Dr. Sloan says the hospital is, “close to capacity day-to-day.”

Dr. David Dougherty, an Infectious Disease Specialist at Baptist Health Lexington says, “We currently have 71 in-patients infected with COVID-19. We expect numbers in the community to go up thru the month of January.”

Swartz says they’ve turned to other areas to help manage some COVID patients, like moving them to the children’s hospital and to an obstetrics area.

Dr. Roger Humphries, at UK HealthCare added, “There’s a lot of angst in the community and we want the emergency departments to be available.”

“We’re all very strained,” added Dr. Sloan. “The medical system took a huge financial hit – not only nurses, physicians getting sick, people are retiring early, people are leaving.”

“We can’t afford any further shortages in our clinicians,” added Swartz. “It’s a real stress and strain on our healthcare ecosystem here in this community.”

What’s more, Dr. Dougherty says, “We haven’t hit the peak yet. We don’t know what’s going to happen a couple weeks after the Christmas holiday.”

“It’s clearly concerning, around where we are now and where we could go, if we don’t have sort of this community response to observing the behaviors we know will flatten the curve,” said Swartz.

Health officials say it’s vital people continue to do their part in stopping the spread.

“Keep masking and social distancing even if you’ve had a COVID-19 infection previously,” said Dr. Dougherty.

Swartz says those practices will remain important, even as we enter into the next phase with vaccination, “Those very basic practices, literally can save lives.”

Healthcare leaders continue to encourage the public to utilize free COVID-19 testing sites in the community, rather than going to the ER. For a list of testing sites near you, click HERE.

Urgent care centers also offer COVID-19 testing with an appointment for those in need of convenient medical services.

The biggest takeaway? Swartz says if you’re asymptomatic, see your normal provider. Anyone with mild symptoms should self-isolate, stay hydrated and stay home unless emergency symptoms develop.

Symptoms that may indicate a life-threatening emergency include:

-Difficulty breathing, shortness of breath
-Chest or upper abdominal pain or pressure
-Fainting, sudden dizziness or weakness
-Changes in vision
-Confusion or changes in mental status
-Any sudden or severe pain
-Uncontrolled bleeding
-Severe or persistent vomiting or diarrhea
-Coughing or vomiting blood
-Difficulty speaking