- Some Los Angeles hospitals are battling a lack of oxygen to treat patients with COVID-19, the Los Angeles Times reported.
- COVID patients typically require ten times more oxygen than non-COVID patients, and demand has overwhelmed the pipes in old hospitals.
- Los Angeles has seen a sharp increase in COVID-19 cases over the holidays, and public health officials are concerned about the city’s ability to deal with new outbreaks.
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At least five hospitals in Los Angeles County have declared internal disasters and have been forced to redirect ambulances to other facilities due to concerns about oxygen supply, the Los Angeles Times reported.
The Times reported that several hospitals were experiencing a shortage of oxygen cylinders and that hospital pipelines were breaking down due to high volumes of oxygen being sent through the system.
Non-COVID patients typically require about six liters of oxygen per minute, according to the Times, but COVID-19 patients need 60 to 80 liters per minute.
Los Angeles has seen an increase in COVID-19 cases, hospitalizations and post-holiday deaths. In a hospital, the gift shop and the chapel were converted into treatment areas.
As of Monday, Los Angeles averaged more than 14,000 new daily cases last week, according to data compiled by The New York Times.
The LA Times added that the positivity rate for the COVID-19 tests is now 17% in LA County, which is more than four times the county positivity rate on November 1.
When it comes to oxygen, the demand is so high in some hospitals that the system cannot maintain the necessary pressure. In other cases, the high flow of oxygen caused the tubes to freeze.
Public health officials and health professionals said they did not see the spike in increase anytime soon and are concerned that health systems may not be able to treat everyone properly if cases continue to rise.
“All the indicators tell us that our situation can only get worse in early 2021. The rate of transmission in the community remains extraordinarily high … As cases continue at these alarming levels, hundreds of people are likely to die,” Barbara Ferrer, O LA County public health director told the Times.
Dr. Tamara Chambers, a doctor at the Los Angeles County ICU + USC Medical Center, told Business Insider that the problem is not just limited beds to host patients, but also qualified health professionals to treat all incoming patients .
Chambers said health workers at his clinic became ill with COVID-19, which means that there are fewer employees to care for patients.
“I think we are being called the front line, but in fact we are the bottom line. We have public health and safety measures. We count on people to stay at home. We are trying to be the bottom line and provide the last level of care. and support, but there’s a lot we can do, “said Chambers. “The hospital is not that big, it has so many workers.”
Chambers encouraged Americans to take precautionary measures to avoid hospitals altogether.
“It is really essential that everyone stays at home, distances themselves socially and follows all public health measures,” she said.