The country’s corona virus death toll is close to 300,000 on Sunday, a tragic scale for an epidemic that is progressing on an increasingly devastating path, with hospitals in California and the Bay Area recording the number of corona virus patients. Pfizer-Bioentech on Monday.
The intensive care unit capacity available in the Southern California region fell to 4.2% on Sunday from 5.3% a day earlier, and in the Bay Area from 16.6% on Saturday to 17.7% on Saturday. The ICU capacity available in the severely affected San Joaquin Valley was slightly higher, ranging from 0% on Saturday to 1.5% on Sunday.
The gloomy situation of death and disease – which is expected to continue to worsen between winter weather and holiday gatherings – diverged from hopes of exporting the newly approved corona virus vaccine from Pfizer’s manufacturing base in Michigan on Sunday.
The UCSF estimates the vaccine will arrive on Monday, and health workers will begin vaccinating mid-term, medical chief Dr Robert Watcher told The Chronicle on Sunday. He said vaccines would stumble into medical units to prevent the entire sector from realizing the side effects of the vaccine at once.
“Once we start trying to turn this into a long-term care facility and find out who is an essential worker and who has the disease – it will be very tricky,” he said.
In the face of deaths following COVID-19, while the arrival of the vaccine is “surprising and very exciting,” Watcher said, “there are not enough people available to vaccinate quickly enough to save the majority of those lives.” Will be lost during the curve.
UCLA Health expects vaccine shipments to arrive on Monday or Tuesday. Authorities there were ready to store and manage cold-dependent doses, and UCLA has been designated as a regional center for distribution to other intensive care hospitals.
“We expect a certain number of doses over the next day or two and additional items will follow,” UCLA said.
The California Department of Public Health announced on Sunday that a team of independent medical experts from the western states – which was formed when Washington, Oregon and Nevada joined California in an effort to independently test for corona virus vaccines – reviewed Pfizer’s vaccine and determined that it was safe. Useful for general use. The Western State Scientific Safety Study Working Group urged state governors to “avoid any unnecessary delays” in the distribution of the vaccine.
Gavin Newsom praised the team’s work, saying, “We know hope comes with a vaccine. While we are vigilant in preventing the spread, we do our best from national scientists to ensure safety, efficacy, and equality for all Californians when it comes to the use and distribution of any COVID-19 vaccine. ”
Watcher said it would take two or three months for more than 150 million essential and vulnerable groups to be vaccinated. He noted that although the current surge will subside after Christmas, after subsequent vaccination rolls, it will remain significantly flat until March. He estimated that about 100 million people would have to be vaccinated to produce a larger tooth on the ramp. The Pfizer vaccine should be given in two doses at three-week intervals for maximum effectiveness.
So far, Watcher noted, the Bay Area has “had the lightest success in any major metropolitan area in the entire country” – even here, “our luck is starting to wane.”
Bay Area Corona virus hospital reached a record high of 1,344 on Saturday, with the latest data available – an extraordinary rise from 370 a month ago. The California hospital took 13,000 seats for the first time Saturday, up from 3,399 a month ago.
Michael Kaskil-Hames, senior vice president of hospital operations in Kaiser Permanente Northern California, said hospitals in the health system have added resources to about 35% higher than their normal capacity. By protecting travel nurses, increasing beds in ICUs, and transferring patients to less vulnerable hospitals, hospitals are more prepared for a normal winter. In addition to cancer cases and emergency surgeries, hospitals have also postponed hospital stay procedures.
As for vaccines, he said, “We expect initial quotas to be very low and we are working to ensure an equitable distribution based on those health workers in high-risk areas of exposure,” he said in an email. Move quickly to put. “
The report was co-authored by San Francisco Chronicle staff writer Sam Whiting and the Associated Press.
Vanessa Aradonto is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: [email protected] Twitter: _V_anana