Sioux Falls healthcare officials urge vaccination, say pandemic is at 'whole new level'

Sioux Falls healthcare officials are urging residents to protect themselves against COVID-19 as the Omicron variant continues to slam hospitals, with at least one expert saying the pandemic has been elevated "to a whole new level."

At a Thursday press conference downtown, David Basel, Avera's vice president of clinical quality and Mike Wilde, Sanford Health's vice president medical officer, both spoke about the urgency in mitigating the spread of the virus.

Basel said Avera is seeing record positive tests as well as positivity rates, resulting in challenges to both staffing and patient care. Omicron may have a markedly lower hospitalization rate than the Delta variant of COVID-19, but the "sky-high number of cases" means that it's still a massive challenge for the healthcare systems, he said.

More: Stop visiting the ER for COVID tests, Sanford Health and Avera ask as hospitalizations increase

"We are making harder and harder choices every day," Basel said, noting every open bed from a patient discharge — or often, a death — requires deciding which patient most needs to take it.

Both Wilde and Basel said the vast majority of hospitalizations across both systems were patients who were unvaccinated or not fully boosted, and urged the public to get vaccinated, pointing specifically to the importance of COVID-19 booster shots.

Wilde agreed, saying he didn't believe the general public had a good sense of how "dramatic" the disease can be in the hospital.

That's even if you've already had COVID-19, Wilde said. While the natural immunity provided by an infection wanes after about 90 days, the immunity provided by the vaccine lasts longer.

But, Basel said, differences in Omicron's spike proteins meant this variant was especially good at negating the effects of the original series of COVID-19 vaccines, adding the booster shot increased effectiveness from roughly 30% to 75%.

Basel also said even more than previous variants, Omicron's symptoms have significant overlap with the common cold. Even if you only have a runny nose or a sore throat — stay home, he said.

Another important thing people can do is assume a positive result on an at-home test is correct, Wilde said. With thousands of tests already being processed, there's no need to add another to the mix by getting another one done at a local hospital.

And don't come to the emergency room to get tested for COVID-19, he added — only for a medical emergency.

More: Sanford Health limits visitors amid high active COVID-19 cases

Basel said there was some hope to be taken from the pattern Omicron has shown in other areas — hitting extremely hard but fading away soon afterward.

But for the moment, both men agreed that now was the time to act.

"We need you to get vaccinated," Wilde said. "We need you to get boosted.”

This article originally appeared on Sioux Falls Argus Leader: Sanford, Avera officials urge COVID vaccination, say pandemic is at 'whole new level'