What to Know
- Cleveland Clinic had 9 of its 48 ICU beds available Monday morning
- President Rodolfo Blandon expects number of ICU patients to increase through July
- 20 nurses are being brought in from other states to help at the hospital
The recent increase in coronavirus cases has filled some South Florida hospitals, or brought them close to their capacity.
At Cleveland Clinic in Broward County, less than 10% of its 230 beds are available, according to the state, and nine of its 48 intensive care beds were available Monday morning.
Dr. Rodolfo Blandon, its president, said he expects the number of ICU patients will increase through the end of the month, a result of the recent spike in cases.
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"We know that these patients will likely seek medical care two to four weeks after they test positive,” he said.
His biggest concern is having enough nurses as coronavirus patients require extensive care — 20 are being brought in from other states to help.
On the positive side, Blandon said the virus seems to becoming less aggressive as it mutates — many patients aren't getting as sick as others were in March and April, and he said the drug Remdesivir has been a promising treatment.
Local
He said if the numbers keep spiking, he suspects there would have to be a roll back of some of the current freedoms. After reopening its economy with restrictions throughout May, Florida recently re-closed bars because customers weren't wearing masks or practicing social distancing. Miami-Dade County again recently prohibited restaurants from having indoor seating.
