Hospitals are facing a capacity crunch just in time for the holidays. That’s due to respiratory viruses, but COVID-19 isn’t the biggest driver of hospitalizations this winter. Instead, medical officials say an earlier-than-usual onset of RSV, coupled with an influenza wave, are packing emergency departments to capacity.
That’s particularly true for pediatric units like those at the OSF HealthCare Children’s Hospital of Illinois in Peoria, said Dr. Mike Cruz, OSF HealthCare’s chief operating officer.
“We’re at full capacity, beds and staff. We’re seeing children requested to be transferred in from spaces we know normally don’t transfer kids in from, which means, Iowa, St. Louis, Chicago, Indianapolis, which have children’s hospitals that take care of these sick children, as well. So they’re overwhelmed,” Cruz said.
The return to normalcy may be…
