Queen’s declares internal emergency on Oahu as COVID-19 overwhelms staff
The Queen’s Health Systems declared an “internal state of emergency” today as an influx of COVID-19 patients at its west Oahu hospital outstripped available beds and the ability of staff to care for them.
“That means that all hands are on deck,” said Jason Chang, chief operating officer of The Queen’s Health Systems and president of The Queen’s Medical Center.
Chang said that at one point 63 patients showed up at the emergency department at The Queen’s Medical Center – West O‘ahu, 26 of whom believed they were sick with COVID-19.
“That’s a crisis because that emergency department has 24 beds and 63 makes it very tough for us to provide the right amount of care,” he said.
All of the 104 beds at the west Oahu hospital are full and as many patients as possible are being transferred to The Queen’s Medical Center in downtown Honolulu and potentially the neighbor islands, said Chang.
But that too is a challenge, as those hospitals are also struggling to take care of the increase in patients as COVID-19 cases soar throughout the islands.
Earlier this week, Chang said the hospital system had run out of available intensive care beds, was canceling elective surgeries and procedures, and postponing more serious surgeries when possible.
He said city officials are helping set up a triage tent outside the west Oahu hospital with about two dozen cots. The National Guard may also be called in to help.
“It’s really a crisis out there,” he said. “The number of new COVID cases is just increasingly high.”
Chang said area residents should still go to the west Oahu hospital if they have an emergency, such as a heart attack or stroke.
The emergency declaration applies to all of Queen’s healthcare facilities. Queen’s is expecting 74 relief nurses from the Federal Emergency Management Agency to arrive on Monday. Overall, the state is expecting more than 500 healthcare workers to arrive in Hawaii to assist with the surge in cases.
“It’s overwhelming our system,” said Chang, who urged residents to get vaccinated and stay home from social events. He also advised residents to call the Queen’s COVID hotline at 691-2619 if they are worried about symptoms and need healthcare advice.
