The mood switched quickly in the Medical Center of Aurora’s emergency room.
One moment Dr. Frank Lansville, medical director of the emergency room, was exchanging pleasantries with a few colleagues in a hallway with a cheery “Hello, wonderful people.”
The next, a “code blue” call sounded over the intercom and the staff shifted into high gear.
“They’re all gowning up with eye protection, masks and gloves, not only to protect themselves but also the patients,” Lansville said Wednesday. “We’re assuming everyone has (the virus) and we’re trying to be very thoughtful about the process.”
Paramedics wheeled in a woman on a gurney while performing chest compressions. With her face covered and nearby staff protected, they whisked her into own room, well separated from any other patients and staff.
AAron Ontiveroz, The Denver Post
Dr. Frank Lansville, medical director of the emergency department, watches as a patient is stretchered into the E.R. of the Aurora Medical Center on Wednesday, April 22, 2020.Such is the new reality of emergency room life during a global pandemic, Lansville said. But those new procedures are effective and able to keep emergency room patients and staff safe.
Still, the hospital is tracking a sharp decrease in patients seeking care for non-coronavirus-related ailments, likely due to fear of contracting the virus in the hospital, Lansville said. Those fears are not only unfounded but they can lead to serious complications down the road.
“When things are at their worst, we’re at our best,” Lansville said. “This has been an unexpected world pandemic, but that being said, we’re still here, we’re still functioning at a very high level and we want people to feel comfortable no matter what they’re being seen for.”
In particular, patients suffering heart attacks, strokes, appendicitis, abdominal pain, complications from diabetes and more are avoiding the hospital, Lansville said he’s noticed.
In a given day, the hospital sees between five and 10 patients suffering from those types of ailments. “That’s probably been cut in half,” he said.
Similar decreases have been reported across the country.
Patients able to bring themselves to the emergency room will be given a mask and seen almost immediately. They won’t have to sit for extended periods of time near other patients, Lansville said.
“If they’re concerned, we’re concerned, and they should be seen,” he said. “There’s nothing that replaces being seen by a board-certified physician and they should feel comfortable coming here.”
AAron Ontiveroz, The Denver Post
CT tech Carol Mallasch scans pharmacist Kelly O’Connell as she arrives for her shift at the emergency room of the Aurora Medical Center on Wednesday, April 22, 2020. Extra precautions and measures are being taken by healthcare professionals to protect against the spread of coronavirus within the hospital. Some form of mask, ventilator, face shield, protective masks and clothing are worn by every professional within the building.The decrease of patients is likely due to a swing of the emotional pendulum in the metropolitan area, Lansville and Stephanie Sullivan, spokeswoman for HealthONE, agreed.
When the pandemic first hit, the hospitals flooded with people suffering from sniffles or colds, thinking they caught the virus, they said. But now, patients have gone out of their way to avoid the hospitals.
Hospitals around the state, among other essential organizations, do still face a shortage of equipment.
But the Medical Center of Aurora is one of eight HealthONE health centers in the metropolitan area and part of an even larger network in the country, which gives it advantages in finding protective equipment, Sullivan said.
“We have a deep supply chain that was able to manage this from the beginning,” Sullivan said.
“We’re ready,” she said. “This is what we’ve trained to do.”
AAron Ontiveroz, The Denver Post
An emergency room team member gets teammates ready for the arrival of a patient at the Aurora Medical Center on Wednesday, April 22, 2020.Subscribe to bi-weekly newsletter to get health news sent straight to your inbox.
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