Imperial County hospitals struggle to handle surge in patients
NBC'S Joe Fryer steps behind the scenes to see how front line workers are coping
IMPERIAL COUNTY, Calif. (KYMA, KECY) - Medical workers across the country continue to face serious problems, but the issues are particularly bad in Imperial County.
The county has just two hospitals to handle the highest rate of cases per capita in the entire state of California. Hospital space has become as valuable as any crop in the rural farming community.
"We are kinda busting at the seams, in terms of our bed capacity." said Dr. Adolphe Edward.
The surge in coronavirus cases in Imperial County has become so overwhelming, at least 500 patients have been transferred to hospitals elsehwhere.
Dr. Adolphe Edward is CEO of El Centro Regional Medical Center (ECRMC). ECRMC is now putting up tents in its parking lot to handle patient overflow.
It's a familiar site for this veteran who served in Iraq.
"It actually reminds me of the war. This time, the war zone actually is here in our own country and it's a war against COVID." said Dr. Edward.
Here, it's hospital workers on the front lines.
"I'm starting to understand what PTSD looks like, it's like this." said nurse Christina Santana.
"But just know that we're all praying that this comes to an end soon and we just want to go back to normal." said Judy Cruz, ECRMC's Emergency Department Director.
The population in Imperial County is 85% Latino. It's a community hit disproportionally hard by COVID-19. Even before the pandemic, the region was plagued by high rates of poverty, obesity, and asthma. Those problems are now inflamed by the viruts.
The county is also feeling the impact of the coronavirus crisis in neighboring Mexico, where thousands of Americans live and legally travel back and forth daily.
"It makes me sad…" said Carmina Ramirez.
Ramirez says 10 relatives have tested positive for the virus. One has died. She and her husband live just a block from ECRMC.
"What we hear all the time, are helicopters." said James Taylor.
The helicopters Taylor hears are flying patients to other parts of the state.
"This is a marathon, not a sprint. And it really feels exhausting sometimes." said Sergio Cardenas with Reach Air Medical Service.
Before the pandemic, Reach Air usually did only one or two transfers a day. Now it's up to between 15 and 17 patients a day.
"I would guess there are days where it's just overwhelming?" asked NBC's Joe Fryer.
"You used to be able to clock out, 5-o-clock comes around, you can clock out. Now the phone rings at all hours of the day and there's really no time off." said Cardenas.
A few patients are flown all the way to U.C. San Francisco, hundreds of miles from their families.
"I think communication becomes very challenging, and I think with these far-away families, um, you kind of have to be even more available and more open." says Dr. Peter Ching-Hong with UCSF hospital.
As hospital beds fill up across the state, Imperial County worries, it'll become harder to find places to treat patients. Meanwhile, outside ECRMC, one tent sits empty, but not for long.
"As bad as things are now, you're worried you're nowhere near the end?" asked Joe Fryer.
"No, I don't think we're near the end. We've got to gear up with this mission or we're going to find ourselves in a very bad situation in October." said Dr. Edward.
Dr. Edward isn't just worried about coronavirus come October, he's also concerned about flu season. He says he's particularly worried about having enough staff in the intensive care unit, especially if this goes on for months.
