1 In 3 Montgomery County Hospital Beds Occupied By COVID Patients

Justin Heinze
·2 min read

MONTGOMERY COUNTY, PA — Nearly one out of every three hospital beds in Montgomery County is occupied by a patient being treated for the coronavirus, according to the latest data.

Those numbers are highest at Suburban Community Hospital in Norristown, where the latest federal data shows capacity at 100 percent and 40 percent of all beds filled with COVID-19 patients.

The federal government released new, hospital-level data on Monday. NPR, using analysis from the University of Minnesota's COVID-19 Hospitalization Tracking Project, built a tool that shows hospital-by-hospital information.

You can access the NPR tool here

At Montgomery County hospitals, an average of 31 percent of all patients beds are currently being occupied by COVID-19 patients, according to the data. That's notably more than any other county in the region, including Bucks County (22 percent), Chester County (23 percent), Philadelphia (26 percent), and Delaware County (24 percent).

>>Montco Hospitals Have Overloaded Emergency Rooms, Staff Shortages

Officials in Montgomery County have been warning about capacity in the county for weeks, noting that Montgomery County has more hospitals than nearby counties, and takes in many patients from all bordering counties due to the location of facilities near the county line.

Here's a look at the percentage of hospital beds occupied by COVID-19 patients in Montgomery County hospitals, according to the NPR analysis, as well as the overall percentage their beds currently occupied:

  • Abington Memorial Hospital (Abington) 27% COVID, 91% overall

  • Einstein Medical Center Montgomery (East Norriton) 33% COVID, 97% overall

  • Holy Redeemer Hospital And Medical Center (Meadowbrook) 29% COVID, 65% overall

  • Lansdale Hospital (Lansdale) 36% COVID, 87% overall

  • Main Line Hospital Lankenau (Wynnewood) 23% COVID, 75% overall

  • Physician's Care Surgical Hospital (Royersford) no data on COVID, 67% overall

  • Pottstown Hospital (Pottstown) 29% COVID, 54% overall

  • Suburban Community Hospital (Norristown) 41% COVID, 100% overall

  • Valley Forge Medical Center And Hospital (Norristown) no data on COVID, 82% overall

While there is no clear threshold, NPR cites hospital experts saying that anything above 10 percent is concerning and anything above 20 percent represents "extreme stress" for a hospital.

>>6 Montco Hospitals To Get COVID Vaccine This Week: See Full List

Widespread cases have significantly impacted the number of available healthcare professionals, which officials say is the real issue.

"The challenge for our hospitals is not physical space to put beds, it's having enough nursing personnel, nursing assistance, all the other support staff," Montgomery County Commissioner Val Arkoosh said last week.

As coronavirus cases have spiked in recent weeks, Pennsylvania health officials have urged residents to stay home, wear masks and observe social distancing in order to curb the spread of the virus and keep patients out of rapidly filling hospitals.

Patch correspondent Doug Gross contributed to this report

This article originally appeared on the Norristown Patch