Hospitals continue to struggle with COVID, RSV and flu

Jan. 6—The number of COVID-19 cases reported in December decreased slightly going into the holiday period, but not enough to lessen swelling patient loads that have placed many hospitals overcapacity, according to the most recent data from the New Mexico Department of Health.

While emergency department visits for COVID-19-like illnesses decreased slightly, health care providers saw a sharp increase in emergency room visits for flu-like illnesses. Doctors have likened pediatric cases of respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), flu and COVID-19 to a "perfect storm," with children having multiple viruses at once. In a recent seven-day period, 190 children in the state sought care for COVID-19 alone.

A week before Christmas, public health officials reported overflowing hospitals, a "chilling" number of intubated children and a nationwide shortage of supplies like portable oxygen, fever-reducing medicines and Albuterol, a drug used to relax and clear airways for those struggling to breathe.

"Our pediatric ICU continues to have patients with high acuity, most needing intubation," University of New Mexico Health and Health Sciences spokeswoman Candace Hopkins wrote in a recent text message. "Adult capacity remains above 100%."

Public health officials have for weeks asked New Mexico residents to increase masking and hand washing, and to vaccinate, socially distance and stay home if sick as hospitals struggle with a surge of patients with a trifecta of COVID-19, influenza and RSV.

New Mexico had 103 patients hospitalized for COVID-19 as of Thursday, according to the Department of Health. Five of those patients were ventilated. The department reported 11 new deaths from the illness and said 79 people died of it from mid-November to mid-December.

"Members of the community should continue to expect to wait if they are coming into our [emergency department] with no trauma or a need for immediate medical intervention like a heart attack or stroke," Hopkins texted.

David Gonzales, chief medical officer of Christus St. Vincent Regional Medical Center in Santa Fe, said he thinks people are suffering from "vaccine fatigue," noting the numbers of flu cases presented in recent weeks have been higher than he has seen in years.

Department of Health statistics posted in mid-December indicated that while 71% of all New Mexicans — including 80% of residents 18 and older — received their primary vaccination series, less than 25% of adults and far lower rates of children had received the most recent booster needed to combat omicron variants of the coronavirus that have been spreading throughout the state.

Health care workers continue to be plagued with a high rate of transmission, officials said, advising both adults and children to be vaccinated against COVID-19 and influenza.

Since March 2020, 8,842 deaths reported in New Mexico have been attributed to COVID-19.

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