PHOENIX – Health experts say that while there appears to be a plateau in COVID-19 hospitalizations, there is concern about a rise in COVID-19 after the holidays.
Right now, medical experts from Valleywise Health, Arizona State University, and Banner Health agree that the vaccine will help keep you out of the hospital if you get COVID-19.
“It’s definitely still our best tool we have,” Dr. Michael White said.
White is the clinical director of Valleywise Health. He says that at Valleywise, they maintain a constant number of patients admitted by COVID.
“Our hospital census has varied between 35 and 41 patients over the last 10 days,” he added. Although they now see a worrying trend.
“Our percentage of people who are not vaccinated, who are positive in the hospital today, is 97%.”
Dr. Joshua LaBaer is the executive director of the ASU Institute of Biodiesign. He says the fastest growing population for COVID-19 infection is children.
“One in four new cases of COVID is in a child,” he said during a press conference.
LaBaer says another major concern is the increase in the number of ICU beds taken by COVID-19 patients. He says this is especially worrying, given the lack of nurses in hospitals in the valley.
“That’s over 30% of them right now. If you talk to most hospitals, they’ll tell you that they’re pretty full of patients with COVID-19 and of course the death toll is also rising. Definitely here some concerns about where things are going in the state, ”said Dr. LaBaer.
Dr. Marjorie Bessel, the clinical director of Banner Health, says hospitals are also experiencing an increase in respiratory syncytial virus or RSV.
She says RSV has symptoms similar to COVID-19. “UCI use at all Banner Arizona hospitals has increased over the past 24 hours. It’s not seasonal to see RSV so soon, but it also reminds us that we have the flu season ahead of us, ”added Dr. Bessel.
All three health experts recommend getting the COVID-19 vaccine and the flu vaccine for better protection.
“It seems safe to take both the COVID-19 vaccine and the flu vaccine at the same time,” Dr. White said.
Click here for the latest COVID numbers in Maricopa County.