Sorry, No Vacancy at the Hospital

If this virus was a visible enemy we would be at war with it, and we would be armed with vaccines to fight it. Instead we have the apathy of millions of adults, who refuse to be vaccinated, and they are crushing our healthcare system.

In just a month’s time from my last column; the situation has gotten worse. The number of people with COVID in the U.S. has skyrocketed. In one January day America had 1.35 million patients with COVID (more than any other nation during all of the pandemic). Out of those millions of people with COVID, the hospitals have seen an 83% increase in hospitalizations.
  
The situation has gotten so extreme with the unvaccinated population that even some of the top scientists are giving up. People assume that these scientists now think COVID does not require the strict guidelines as we originally thought; this is not accurate. It means we are at a point where, sadly, these scientists are surrendering to the fact that people will have to die or get very sick. Is that really the choice we want to make when we have other options that work?
  
If this is the path we choose as a nation – let people die and get sick, instead of wearing a mask and getting vaccinated, we still have other consequences to face. Due to the trauma of two years of COVID and the added disregard for hospital staff, we have pushed droves of healthcare workers out of the hospitals. If we continue to shun our healthcare system by refusing to follow guidelines and then expect our healthcare workers to take care of us (the numbers are massive) when we get COVID, the system will collapse. Why?

1. Hospitals are working in crisis mode; you cannot keep up this pace forever
2. When there are shortages to this degree, there are compromises with the delivery of care
3. Too many patients results in no bed availability; patients wait for hours to get care; or they are shipped out to other hospitals, while others get sent back home with their illness, need for surgery and pain
4. When you call for an ambulance, expect to wait
5. If you think health care costs are high now, this is “little league stuff”

What is the solution to prevent the healthcare collapse and once again provide vacancies at our hospitals? Get vaccinated, wear a mask and encourage and educate others to do so.

1. Simply put, the vaccine is safe. Look around and take note of the hundreds of millions of people vaccinated. Not only are they not dead, they are functioning quite well. For example, Donald Trump says that he is doing just fine being vaccinated and boostered.
2. Do you know someone afraid or anxious? Encourage them to talk to a healthcare professional about their fears; the fears are not based on reality. What is real is that we are facing the denial of medical care because of the lack of bed availability and there is not enough staff to care for us.
3. Do you know people who are stuck… a product of inertia? Help get them motivated with information – such as what is presented here.
4. Do you know of people being misguided? Public health measures have been in place for years; this is nothing new. This particular vaccine for COVID has been researched for years and wearing a mask is a simple preventative measure (our surgeons and operating room staff do it all the time). We want safe water to drink; we want uncontaminated food; and we do not want toxins in our medicine. Public health measures keep us safe.

Not wearing a mask and not getting vaccinated because of one’s feelings, denial or selfishness will backfire on us. We are in a pandemic and not recognizing what needs to be done to fix it can really result in our health being compromised. The virus has no emotions; it only knows survival and how to march on.

Charlotte Michos is a clinical nurse specialist who values personal-centered care and serves as a Healthcare Consultant in helping others make informed decisions. For more information, email her or call (845) 548-5980.