Coronavirus Update: San Jose Hospital Dismantles Makeshift Surge Tents As Case Number Decline
SAN JOSE (KPIX 5) -- San Jose's Good Samaritan Hospital on Tuesday packed up and stored away the makeshift tents they have been using to triage, screen and test potential coronavirus patients outside the hospital's ER.
"We brought out these tents so that we could have a surge capacity for COVID-19 patients that was in a safe environment. We wanted to make sure that our patients who were in the ER and non-COVID related were in an environment where they weren't exposed to those patients," said Chief Nursing Officer Mark Brown.
Brown said at the height of the outbreak in Santa Clara County, the hospital was screening roughly 50 potential coronavirus patients a day. Additionally, Brown said eventually three entire floors of the hospital were dedicated exclusively for the treatment of coronavirus patients.
Brown said that began to change a few weeks after the emergency shelter-in-place orders were issued.
"At the height of it, that was three entire nursing departments dedicated to treating COVID-19 patients. Now, we're down to just one," explained Brown.
Brown noted that social distancing slowed the spread of the disease, which gave hospital systems an opportunity to develop surge capacity.
Across town at Regional Medical Center -- a facility which is owned by the same parent company, HCA -- the news is not as good. Regional has seen a modest decline in new patients, but not enough to pack away its triage tents.
"We remain busy combating the virus, but are pleased to see a slight decline in our numbers to date, as we see in the county," a statement released by Regional read.
The tents remain a reminder that progress has been patchwork and the recovery from the outbreak is far from complete.
