New data show increasing COVID-19 hospitalizations in northeast Florida

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – As more and more front-line health workers get the vaccine in Jacksonville, more and more patients are getting the virus.

Since Thanksgiving, the number of coronavirus patients in Duval County has risen to levels not seen since mid-August.

Although the ICU and COVID-19 wards are not full in the area, the wards are filled with more patients.

As of this Friday morning at the five Baptist Health facilities in the area, there were 111 cases with 17 in the ICU. The Agency for Health Care Administration reported Friday afternoon that 272 patients were hospitalized in Duval County due to a “primary” diagnosis of COVID-19.

Dr. Elizabeth Ransom of Baptist Health said the hospital is very vigilant about this.

“We have the capacity and the capacity to manage it. We have enough EPI. We’ve been storing it for months now, so we feel good. And the best news is that, as you said, we are starting to vaccinate our front-line staff, ”said Ransom.

It’s the same at UF Health Jacksonville in two hospitals. There are 56 cases of coronavirus and 12 people are in the ICU.

As more people from across the community are tested, we will get a better idea of ​​hospitalizations throughout Northeast Florida.

New data from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services provides us with a snapshot of the situation of hospitals News4Jax has not heard about regularly.

For example, we now know that in the three Ascension St. hospitals. Vincent of the area, during the seven days ending Dec. 10, there was an average of 96 COVID-19 patients combined with 29 patients in the ICU.

At Memorial Hospital, there were an average of 25 COVID-19 patients in this same period with six in the ICU.

Orange Park Medical Center had 36 patients with seven in the ICU, while Flagler Hospital had 26 people with COVID-19 and six in the ICU.

While the numbers are cause for concern, doctors said people are getting better.

“Fortunately, we don’t see a big increase in fatalities, thank God, and hopefully not,” Ransom said.