WASHINGTON — One Seattle-area hospital has already seen patient care delayed by the stringent infection-control practices that the government recommended for suspected coronavirus cases. Another in Chicago switched Thursday morning into “surge” mode, setting up triage tents in its ambulance bay and dedicating an entire floor to coronavirus patients. With the bow wave of coronavirus infections still to come, hospitals across the country are trying to prepare for a flood of critically ill patients who will strain their capacities like nothing they have seen in at least a generation. There may not be enough ventilators or bed space for a crush of seriously ill patients. “We’re a hospital that is always full, so it doesn’t take much to tip us over the edge.”

Source: New York Times March 12, 2020 19:41 UTC