South Dakota?hospitals are facing another COVID surge because of stalled vaccination rates and the Delta variant.??Monument Health?is again?delaying non-urgent surgeries?to preserve capacity, while other systems?struggle?with?staffing shortages?and burnout.??
Dr. Chad?Thury?is the Regional Director of Quality with Avera Medical Group.?He says staff morale?is a concern.??
“Unfortunately we’ve had some staff that have left healthcare because of COVID over the last 18 months,” he says, “so we’ve got some holes to fill in?in regards to?staffing because of that as well.”?
Remaining staff are facing burnout after an unusually?busy?summer.?Dr. Thury?says hospitals?caught up on procedures they were forced to delay in the early days of the pandemic.??
“We want to make sure we’re still providing all the routine, everyday things we need to do and deal with COVID on top of it,” he explains. “We’re?gong to need all the help we can get from the community to decrease the rate of COVID infections and COVID related hospitalizations.”?
Dr.?Thury?says the COVID-19 vaccine is?effective in preventing hospitalizations and death from the disease. He also recommends wearing a mask when maintaining a physical distance from others isn’t possible.?
This story comes from a recent interview on SDPB's weekday radio program, "In the Moment." Listen to the full interview below.
