Local News

Durham EMS strained by staff shortages among COVID surge

An increasing number of COVID cases throughout the state is putting added pressure on our health care system - and it's trickling down to emergency medical services.

Posted Updated

By
Lora Lavigne
, WRAL Durham reporter
DURHAM, N.C. — An increasing number of COVID cases throughout the state is putting added pressure on our health care system – and it’s trickling down to emergency medical services.

Hospitals and EMS are encouraging the public to avoid emergency departments unless it’s a life-threatening situation to help hospitals open up beds for ambulance crews.

Staff shortages are everywhere, but they’re most concerning for departments that provide life-saving assistance.

About half a dozen of emergency responders have been out sick in Durham within the past few weeks – a slight uptick compared to last year.

Transporting sick patients has always been a significant job, but now more than ever, emergency responders are taxed with a number of challenges.

“What we have noticed is that we’ve had an increase in the number of our staff who have either tested positive or have become symptomatic. Probably more so in the last three to four weeks than over the previous five to seven months,” said Mark Lockhart, Durham County’s Chief of Paramedics.

Records between Jan 1 – 10 show an 81% increase in the number of patients with COVID or flu-like symptoms compared to this time last year.

They also reveal a 14% increase in call volume overall and a 16% increase in the number of patients transported for a different reason, who then test positive in the hospital.

Because of this, Durham has two units from FEMA helping run 5-8 calls per 12-hour shift.

“Certainly we’re trying to do what we can to not contribute to that hospital capacity issue, but unfortunately at this point just with the number of patients and the number of calls it’s got all of us stretched pretty thin,” said Lockhart.

Orange County has had about nine staff members out due to COVID within the past seven to ten days.

“This is a significant uptick in absences, but so far, we are handling most of the vacancies created,” said Kirby Sanders, Orange County Director of Emergency Medical Services.

“We have experienced a couple of occasions over the last week where this resulted in not having all of our trucks staffed. We are depending on temporary personnel and overtime to fill these slots when they occur. It is certainly of concern and we are monitoring closely,” he added.

In Wake County, they do not actively track who has COVID, but there are 70 general vacancies for full time employees and 30 other virtual vacancies due to a variety of reasons.

“Which are employees that are not on the schedule for some reason other than vacation time or daily sick leave. This includes military leave, parental leave, workers comp, COVID quarantine, light duty, and federal deployment,” said Brian Brooks, Wake County’s Assistant Chief of Emergency Medical Services.

According to Brooks, they are placing units out of service daily with that number varying on any given day. They have been less than five on several occasions and greater than 10 on many others.

Wake County is also averaging 350 calls per day. FEMA units are assisting departments in Wake County as well.

“We have certainly learned some things about peak staffing and trying to look at the data regarding call volume both based on the day of the week as well as the time of day and making sure we have the appropriate EMS aside for those times,” said Lockhart.

“I would certainly like for us to get around the corner with the immediate threat and certainly get back to a more robust system that is not as taxed with call volume and with employees being out or being ill,” he added.

The FEMA units in Durham are helping for another week. Then FEMA will reassess if it should be deployed to another area of greater need or stay in Durham for an additional two more weeks.

FEMA is scheduled to serve counties throughout the state until February.

Related Topics

 Credits 

Copyright 2024 by Capitol Broadcasting Company. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.