Patient Safety | 04.27.20
Hospitals Redeploy Thousands of Healthcare Workers to Respond to COVID-19 Crisis
by NAMSS Staff
Boston Globe (04/20/20) McCluskey, Priyanka Dayal
Since the coronavirus pandemic hit, thousands of Massachusetts hospital workers have been redeployed and thrust into new roles to respond to the crisis. More than 3,700 people with confirmed or suspected coronavirus had been hospitalized in Massachusetts as of April 20, swamping some emergency rooms, intensive care units, and other hospital departments. Others facilities, though, remain largely empty. Hospitals canceled elective surgeries and non-urgent appointments to prepare for the outbreak. This, in turn, has left many doctors, nurses, and administrative workers with a fraction of their usual workload. This has made them prime candidates for redeployment. One example is Dr. Mitchel Harris. He has put off most of his surgeries at Mass. General and is operating only on patients with traumatic injuries and such urgent problems as tumors. On other days, he goes where the hospital needs him.
Read the full article from the Boston Globe.