Carson Tahoe Health is 90 percent full as COVID-19 test positivity rates skyrocket in Carson City and beyond

As area hospitals are quickly filling up with COVID-19 and non COVID-19 patients alike, Carson Tahoe Health (CTH) has joined the unfortunate ranks.

Thankfully, CTH thought ahead and for the second time since the pandemic began, they chose to postpone all elective surgeries until the surge in cases is back under control.

At CTH’s Regional Medical Center, the main hospital campus, they are licensed for 145 beds, and have expanded into the 15 beds at Sierra Surgery, and 15 beds at Long-Term Acute Care (LTAC) Hospital.

“We continually monitor patient status and staff ability to assure proper care delivery, which is in a state of continual flux,” said CTH in a statement. “We are grateful that a few weeks ago we proactively suspended non-emergent or non-time-sensitive surgeries (emergency surgeries have not been suspended). Because of this, we are able to reallocate our resources to ensure a safe and healthy environment for each patient (COVID-positive or otherwise) that comes through our facilities.”

Within the hospital, COVID-19 patients are kept in their own cohorts whenever possible, and are separated from non-COVID-19 patients.

While Renown has had to expand into their parking garage-turned-hospital wing to house the influx of COVID-19 patients, CTH has not yet had to go over their capacity limits.

According to CTH, patients are only sent to another facility if they need a higher level of care.

“We only transport a patient to another facility if they need a higher level of care than we can reasonably provide. Hospital referrals and transfers from Carson Tahoe have not changed due to COVID-19 and continue happen to facilitate proper higher levels of care as needed by our patients and community.”

This week, it was announced that over 1,000 new cases were reported in the Quad-County area within the span of one week.

Between Halloween and Thanksgiving, the test positivity rate for Carson City has more than doubled from 8.1 percent to 21.2 percent currently. The test positivity rate means that out of all of the tests performed in Carson City, 21 percent of them have returned positive, which is measured over a 14 day period with a 7 day lag.

Douglas County’s positivity rate is currently at 16.4 percent, Lyon County is at 21 percent, and Storey County is the lowest in the Quad-County region at 7.1 percent.

Carson City has surpassed both Washoe County (18.9 percent) and Clark County (14.7) in test positivity numbers. Lincoln County is leading with 35.3 percent test positivity rate, down from 46.7 percent on Nov. 16.

Due to the increase in positivity rates throughout the Quad-County region, CCHHS must change the case reporting protocol. Previously, cases were not reported until an investigation was completed. Effective Tuesday, positive labs received will be reported as an active case and the individuals will be notified of their test result which may be prior to an investigation occurring.

As the positivity rate continues to increase in the Quad-County region, CCHHS encourages everyone to continue practicing preventative actions such as wearing a mask when around people who are not in your household, washing your hands often with soap and water for 20 seconds, using hand sanitizer with at least 60 percent alcohol, practicing social distancing, and staying home as much as possible. As we enter the holiday season, staying diligent and preventing the spread of COVID-19 is even more important.