September 9, 2021 – As the State of Texas continues to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic, it is imperative that our community have all the information they need to make informed decisions about their own health.
Recently your local hospital received COVID-19 variant results on a number of samples taken the last week of July through the first week of August. Of those results submitted, 97.5 percent of those tested during that time frame presented with the COVID-19 Delta variant. The Alpha and Gamma variants only accounted for 1 percent each of the last group of variant results received by Ochiltree General.
With those results in mind, Ochiltree General would like our community to know that at our facility – and throughout other local hospitals – approximately 95 percent of patients experiencing severe symptoms requiring hospitalization have been unvaccinated individuals.
“We know now that the COVID-19 vaccine is extremely effective in protecting patients from suffering severe symptoms due to common COVID-19 variants,” says OGH Infection Control Supervising Physician Dr. Manon E. “Tripps” Childers III. “We are urging our community to get vaccinated at a time when healthcare providers are experiencing difficulties finding beds to transfer patients with life-threatening complications within our area and beyond.”
The difficulty in finding beds to transfer patients doesn’t just apply to COVID-19 cases either.
“As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic and needing to care for patients with extreme complications, beds are at a minimum for patients experiencing severe injuries as well as anyone with conditions such as strokes, heart attacks, etc.” says Dr. Childers. “The more people who are vaccinated, the more people will either remain healthy or experience very minor symptoms allowing them to recover at home which will free beds for other life-threatening cases.”
For more information about the efficacy and safety of the COVID-19 vaccination, please speak with your local Primary Care Provider or visit www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/vaccines/index.html.
If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact Assistant Chief Nursing Officer Jessica Russell, RN, at jrussell2@oghtx.com, Chief Nursing Officer Jyme Kinnard, RN, at jlkinnard@oghtx.com or call the hospital main line at 806-435-3606.
Ochiltree General Hospital, your hometown critical access hospital, offers an expansive collection of programs and services designed with you in mind. From our Obstetrics and Women’s Health services to the programs at The Seasons Assisted Living, our aim is to provide for you and your loved ones no matter the stage of life or need.
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