Duke doctor: September could be worst month for COVID hospitalizations yet
Evidence is mounting to show the fight against COVID-19 in North Carolina could be about to enter uncharted waters.
One doctor at Duke has a sobering warning.
At the onset of a holiday weekend where many usually travel and congregate in big crowds, Duke University infectious disease specialist Dr. Cameron Wolfe paints a dark picture for the COVID outlook in the weeks ahead. Dr. Wolfe feels September could bring the worst of the virus that we've seen yet.
“I think it’s most of our anticipation that we will go past our hospitalization numbers for January," Dr. Wolfe said. "It’s going to make September the worst that we’ve seen at any point in the pandemic.”
The data shows we're headed in the wrong direction. As of Friday, the state is reporting:
- 8,590 new COVID cases
- 3,800 people hospitalized
- 930 of those hospitalized COVID patients are in the ICU, and 646 are on ventilators
- About 11% of all ICU beds in the state are available, and about 20% of all beds are free
“You crash your car this weekend, I don’t know that I can find a bed. That's nuts. We’ve never been in that situation before,” Dr. Wolfe said.
There have been 14,708 total COVID-related deaths in the state since March 2020 according to the state's COVID dashboard. The 3,800 hospitalizations is the most since the pandemic began.
Dr. Wolfe wants people to have fun this weekend, but also be conscious of their health. He's encouraging those who go out to wear a mask and avoid indoor celebrations.
“You can try and enjoy yourself, but you've got to make smart decisions," he said. "We’ve had 18 months of learning how to do this right. It’s not the weekend to make it harder for us in the hospital where we already don’t have beds,”
Dr. Wolfe hopes people will get their shot before it’s too late. Not unlike other hospitals in the area, Duke has a very limited number of ICU beds available.
Dr. David Wohl, an infectious disease specialist at UNC Health, is also on record as believing we're in for a rough month in an interview last week with WRAL.
"We're in the place we are now, a place of surge, a place of pain, a place of chaos, because, to be truthful, we have so many people unvaccinated," Dr. Wohl said. "If we didn't have as many people unvaccinated, our ICUs wouldn't be as full."
"I think we're in for a lot of trouble and I think we're going to see a lot of people die."
Doctors continue to speak of the importance of being vaccinated to keep from getting seriously sick. Of the 53 COVID-19 patients in UNC Health Southeastern in Lumberton on Thursday, only two had been vaccinated.
