Hospital Urges Residents To Seek Non-Coronavirus Critical Care

OCEANSIDE, NY —As the number of hospitalized coronavirus patients on Long Island continues to decline, Mount Sinai South Nassau is urging residents to not put off any needed critical care out of fear of contagious, crowded emergency departments. There are now fewer than 100 COVID-19 patients at Mount Sinai.

The hospital reported a 50% reduction of emergency room volume due to non COVID-19 reasons during the pandemic's peak. That has sparked concern that some Long Islanders are delaying needed care, with negative consequences. At-home deaths are also being reported at numbers higher than expected.

“We are adjusting to the ‘new normal’ and that means a hyper-vigilance on patient safety, cleaning procedures, and infection control to ensure patient and staff safety,” said Richard J. Murphy, President and CEO of Mount Sinai South Nassau.

“Residents should not be afraid to come to the hospital, including to our emergency department, if they need urgent medical care. They should not put their health on hold any longer.”

Any patients who come to Mount Sinai will be tested for COVID-19, and those who are scheduled for needed care will be screened at drive-up testing facilities before their in-hospital procedures. There is an area of the emergency department reserved for those who are not COVID-19.

The hospital is launching the "Don't Put Your Health on Hold" campaign across social media.

Elective surgeries are still paused in Nassau County, although Gov. Cuomo relaxed that restriction for Suffolk and Westchester counties on Saturday. Chief Medical Officer at Mount Sinai South Nassau Adhi Sharma said that some of the elective surgeries have now become emergency surgeries due to the delay.

This article originally appeared on the Long Beach Patch