OAHHS Hospital Voice Fall/Winter 2020

15 Fall/Winter 2020 its first COVID-19 case, revenue dropped 60 percent. Visits to ER’s and urgent care clinics dropped signifi- cantly. Some hospitals reported a 70 percent revenue loss, and collectively hospitals were losing $13 million every day. Some help came from the federal CARES Act, but several hospitals were understandably concerned about their long-term sustainability. A few hospitals made the wrenching decision to furlough some staff members and reduce the hours of others. Curry General was one of them, and Williams said it was one of the most difficult things she’s ever had to do. “As our administrative team went through these reductions, each one of us were near tears,” she said. “They are my neighbors, they are my family, they are my friends.” Williams said several staff members showed incredible selflessness and generosity. “They said please don’t lay off this person, she’s got three kids and she’s the only one working. I’ll be the one to go.” The financial picture has improved with the resumption of scheduled care, and hospitals have worked hard to show the public that it’s safe to return. “There’s no reason to put your health at risk in other ways in an attempt to avoid catching COVID,” said Heather Wall, chief nursing officer at Peace- Health Sacred Heart at Riverbend in Springfield. PeaceHealth and other hospitals have instituted several safety procedures designed to make an already safe environment even safer: screenings for all patients at the door, masks for everyone, and a dedicated space for potential COVID patients. Many patients have returned for care, and hospital staff is happy to see that. There were stories of patients avoiding routine care that led to more serious outcomes. “We don’t want people staying at home if they have any symptoms of weakness, any severe headaches, chest pains, those all need to be seen,” said Dr. Anh Nguyen of the Providence Gateway Urgent Care Clinic. While the hospital environment has stabilized with as patients have returned, leaders are not ready to say the situation is back to normal. As we have all come to realize, the old normal will take a long time to return, if it ever does. But even during these uncertain times, you can depend on this: hospitals will always answer the call. In early March, facing a possible hospital bed shortage and the reality of a breakdown in the national PPE supply chain, it became clear that a pause on elective procedures made sense. Beds would be needed for the critically ill if some of the most severe scenarios came true, and scarce PPE was needed for frontline caregivers and expanded testing. Charlie Tveit, CEO of Lake District Hospital Ginny Williams, CEO of Curry General Hospital Heather Wall, Chief Nursing Officer, PeaceHealth Sacred Heart at Riverbend