Once again, COVID-19 cases are climbing in New Hampshire. But with about a year and a half of experience with the virus, local hospital officials say they’d know how to handle another surge.
“We have been in this position just recently. We had all hoped it was done … but having had the experience, we are much better prepared than we were last time,” said Dr. Aalok Khole, an infectious disease physician at Cheshire Medical Center in Keene.
In just a few weeks, the rate of new cases in the state has shot up, from an average of 39 per day for the week ending July 23 to 148 for the week ending Friday, according to data from the N.H. Department of Health and Human Services. The latter average includes the 232 cases the state health department announced Thursday – the highest one-day total since early May.
A majority of the new cases nationally are being caused by the more contagious delta variant, first identified in India, according to federal officials. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that delta accounted for more than 80 percent of new cases in the Northeast and the country as of July 31.
As of Monday, 93 cases of delta had been identified in New Hampshire, according to data from the state health department. However, a spokeswoman said previously that only 25 percent of the state’s samples were being tested for variants.
The rise in COVID-19 cases has translated to an increase in hospitalizations statewide, though those numbers still pale in comparison to those seen last winter.
At the beginning of January – when hospitalizations reached an all-time high in New Hampshire – there were 334 COVID-19 patients in Granite State hospitals, according to data from the state health department.
As of Sunday, 38 confirmed COVID-19 patients were in hospitals statewide, compared to 17 on July 1, data show.
Even so, officials from both Cheshire Medical and Monadnock Community Hospital say they’re confident in their safety protocols and precautions.
Khole, of Cheshire Medical, said the hospital developed a grid system late last year – when the nation was grappling with an earlier surge of COVID-19 – to help officials decide when to implement or loosen different measures.
“We came up with trigger points, where if we are at this level, this is what we are going to do, such as looking at PPE supplies, how many negative pressure rooms do you have, what are we going to do with visitors,” he said. “… It’s a well-oiled machine in a way, where people know what to do.”
With the recent uptick in cases, Khole said Cheshire Medical has begun increasing its capacity for COVID-19 patients and also is making available more negative pressure rooms – hospital rooms that keep patients with infectious illnesses, or patients who are susceptible to infections, from others.
Cheshire Medical has not tightened its visitor policy since loosening it in mid-June, according to hospital spokeswoman Heather Atwell.
The policy allows up to two visitors at a time for inpatients and emergency department patients and one visitor for people receiving outpatient procedures. Patients at the end of their lives have no limits on visitors.
Masks are still required by everyone inside the hospital, and everyone is still screened for COVID-19 symptoms before entering – protocols that have been ongoing throughout the pandemic – according to the website.
At Monadnock Community Hospital, Chief Medical Officer Dr. Daniel Perli said the facility is using lessons learned from the previous surges.
“I think we are more informed, as far as education internally for the employees and education about vaccination, the masking and the precautions that we’ll have to take,” he said.
The hospital recently “escalated” its masking policy, Perli said, from using standard surgical masks when entering a patient’s room to N95 face coverings.
In regards to visitation, the hospital implemented a stricter policy on Friday, according to hospital spokesman Phil McFarland.
No visitors are allowed for adults in the emergency department or for adult inpatients. Pregnant patients are allowed to have one person with them during labor, but are not able to have visitors otherwise.
Children are able to have their primary caregiver with them for outpatient and emergency department visits.
Perli added that Monadnock Community Hospital is also thinking of restarting its bi-weekly meetings with community stakeholders – such as first responders and nursing home officials – to ensure everyone is “on the same page.”
“We want to be prepared and not wait for the next surge,” he said.
However, having to reimplement stricter protocols is frustrating, especially as COVID-19 vaccination rates recently plateaued in New Hampshire, according to Khole.
“It’s just sad that will have to do it yet again, which is something we could’ve avoided,” he said. “It’s a mixed bag of emotions where, sure, we know what to do, but it’s been 18 months and it’ll be the third go around.”
And even with these tried-and-true practices in place, there’s still a risk of hospitals becoming overwhelmed with COVID-19 patients, causing a ripple effect throughout the health care system.
“We’d all like to think that we are prepared, but there are always things that catch you by surprise,” Khole said. “… If it goes beyond a point we are stretched for capacity, that gets worrying on different levels.”
These articles are being shared by partners in The Granite State News Collaborative. For more information visit collaborativenh.org.