Beginning next week, UCHealth hospitals in Northern Colorado will find a bit of relief as a medical response team from the Department of Defense steps in.
In a news release today, UCHealth announced that approximately 20 nurses, providers respiratory therapists and administrators from the Department of Defense will be deployed to the Poudre Valley Hospital in Fort Collins. The response team will assist the hospital for a month to ease capacity and staffing challenges.
While Poudre Valley Hospital will receive the additional staff, “we do anticipate this will free up some of our UCHealth staff to support other hospitals in the area,” said Kelly Tracer, senior media relations specialist for UCHealth.
“We are so grateful that this team will assist us in providing exceptional care in northern Colorado,” said Kevin Unger, the president and chief executive officer at PVH and UCHealth Medical Center of the Rockies in Loveland. “We anticipate this additional support and other plans we already have in the works will help make a significant difference.”
It is currently unknown if the impact of the response team will be felt in the Longmont area, Tracer said.
In October, rising COVID-19 cases and demands on ICU units and hospital staffing struggles caused Gov. Jared Polis to request medical teams from the Federal Emergency Management Administration, or FEMA.
As of today, UCHealth reported a total of 373 patients across the state were hospitalized because of the coronavirus, approximately 140 of those patients requiring intensive care, the news release stated. Around 100 of the 373 patients are being treated in one of UCHealth’s northern Colorado hospitals.
“This is the highest number the health system has seen this year,” the news release stated.
“Our providers and staff have been working long, hard days and nights for more than 20 months now. They are weary but continue to show up every day to serve our community with pride,” Unger added. “They will appreciate the support.”
