Burlington

Surge has hospitals worried

Aurora Medical Center Burlington is among the Advocate Aurora Health hospitals that have seen a steep increase in COVID-19 patients in recent weeks. The hospital system, which operates 26 hospitals in two states, said it reached an all-time high for coronavirus cases on Sunday. (Photo by Ed Nadolski)

Advocate Aurora reaches all time high for COVID cases

By Jason Arndt

Staff Writer

Advocate Aurora Health recorded an all-time high in COVID-19 hospitalizations this week and officials from the two-state hospital system warned the trends could become worse.

Chief Nursing Officer Mary Kingston said in Monday’s news briefing the total number of patients under its care has skyrocketed within the last two months.

“The number of our patients with COVID-19 in our hospitals is rising very quickly across our system, which is 26 hospitals,” she said. “We’ve reached an all-time high (Sunday). We had 1,426 inpatients with COVID-19. And just to give perspective, that has doubled from 30 days ago and quadrupled from 60 days ago.”

Kingston, however, said the numbers continued to grow as of Monday.

“In fact, we just received today’s statistics and we’re now at 1,491 inpatients.”

Meanwhile, according to Monday’s data, dozens of people in Kenosha, Racine and Walworth counties have been hospitalized in three of Aurora’s hospitals with COVID-19 diagnoses.

The two-state hospital system reported 12 people are in the hospital at Aurora Medical Center in Burlington while another 11 remained hospitalized at Aurora Lakeland in Elkhorn.

Advocate Aurora’s Kenosha hospital on Monday had 30 people admitted for COVID-19.

Statewide, the Wisconsin Hospital Association reported similar trends, according to Monday’s dashboard.

In Southeast Wisconsin, which encompasses 31 total hospitals spanning nine counties, including Racine, Walworth, and Kenosha counties reported a seven-day increase of 246 patients with 986 currently hospitalized as of Monday. This figure includes 253 in ICU, 40 more than seven days ago.

To read the complete version of this story see the Jan. 6 edition of the Burlington Standard Press.

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