LEE COUNTY, Fla. — Lee Health President & CEO Dr. Larry Antonucci says they are seeing a downswing of the COVID-19 surge caused by Delta Variant.
“We are, thankfully, on the downswing of the COVID-19 surge caused by the Delta Variant that tested our community’s resources but never our resolve. I am thankful for the work Lee Health’s dedicated staff continues to do to care for our patients, and also for the support that the Southwest Florida community has shown us. I am also grateful for the help from state and local leaders for bringing important resources such as monoclonal antibody treatment and increased testing capabilities to our area.
While this surge may be winding down, it does not mean we are out of the woods. The Delta surge is just one of four major surges we’ve seen throughout this pandemic. If we become complacent now, we are putting ourselves at risk for further surges as we head into our seasonal months. The best thing our community can do to help prevent future surges and potential mutations of the coronavirus is to get vaccinated today. Lee Health offers COVID-19 vaccines for anyone 12 and older at its Community Vaccination Clinic, located inside Gulf Coast Medical Center. It’s open Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 7:00 a.m. – 3:30 p.m. and there is no cost for the vaccine.”
· As of this morning, we have 251 COVID-19 patients isolated in our hospitals (inpatient).
· Of these patients, 7 of them are children being treated at Golisano Children’s Hospital of Southwest Florida.
· Yesterday, we had 24 new COVID-19 hospital admissions and 21 COVID-19 discharges.
· 63% of our ventilators and 8% of our ICU rooms are available for use. We have 46 COVID-19 patients on ventilators and 70 in the intensive care unit.
· This morning, census was at 90% of staffed operational bed capacity.
· Since the start of the pandemic, 1,125 patients have lost their lives inside our hospitals to COVID-19, including 7 yesterday.
