UPDATE: Idaho enacts crisis hospital care standards; Gritman chooses to remain at 'contingency' level

UPDATE / CLARIFICATION: 4:20 p.m.

Gritman Medical Center in Moscow released the following information Tuesday afternoon in response to the activation of the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare's activation of "crisis standards of care" for northern Idaho on Tuesday morning.

Gritman, in its release below, clarifies that the hospitals and health care systems affected by Health and Welfare's decision act independently, and that Gritman will remain at the "contingency standards of care" level unless a move to the crisis level is required.

Details on the levels of care can be found in this story by the Idaho Capital Sun.

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GRITMAN'S NEW RELEASE

Gritman Responds to Activation of Crisis Standards of Care in Northern Idaho

MOSCOW ― Gritman Medical Center is closely monitoring our staffing and patient levels as a result of a continued dramatic increase in COVID-19 patients in our region, as well as the State of Idaho’s activation of Crisis Standards of Care (CSC) for all 10 northern Idaho counties.

The declaration Monday, Sept. 7, by the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare was the result of a request from Kootenai Health in Coeur d’Alene, the major medical center serving northern Idaho. Each hospital assesses its specific situation and Gritman Medical Center has not requested to activate Crisis Standards of Care at this time. Should it be necessary in the future, Gritman would consult with the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare regarding that decision.

Hospitals normally operate under Conventional Standards of Care, one of three levels on the continuum of care as defined by the state. Major emergencies and disasters such as the COVID-19 pandemic can stretch the health system to the point of Contingency Standards of Care – meaning available space, staff, supplies and standards of care can be evaluated on an ongoing basis. Gritman moved to Contingency Standards of Care early in the pandemic but has not had to move to Crisis Standards of Care at this time.

Gritman’s leadership teams monitor and report daily on the availability of inpatient beds, appropriate staffing, medicines, medical supplies, and equipment such as ventilators. Together these metrics make up the complicated equation of our hospital’s capacity.

Several weeks ago, our teams foresaw the need to establish a dedicated COVID-19 patient care unit in our hospital. That unit has already been at capacity on several occasions in the past few weeks.

Gritman Medical Center, including our hospital and clinics, are open and safe for care. Please make your health a priority and do not defer getting the care you need. However, our medical staff are feeling the effects of the unprecedented surge in patients requiring care for COVID-19. This continued increase, overwhelmingly in patients who have not been vaccinated, is affecting our capacity as well as our ability to transfer patients for other types of care including emergencies and conditions not related to COVID-19.

The vast majority of our hospitalized and seriously ill COVID-19 patients are unvaccinated. The vaccines are helping prevent serious illness, hospitalization and death from the disease. We strongly recommend choosing to receive the vaccine to protect yourself. Wearing a mask, washing your hands, keeping social distance, and limiting gatherings with those from outside your immediate household are also proven to help slow the spread.

An FAQ with more details is available on the state’s website.

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ORIGINAL STORY

BOISE — Idaho public health leaders activated "crisis standards of care" for the state's northern hospitals because there are more coronavirus patients than the institutions can handle.

The Idaho Department of Health and Welfare quietly enacted the move Monday and publicly announced it in a statement Tuesday morning — warning residents that they may not get the care they would normally expect if they need to be hospitalized.

It came as the state's confirmed coronavirus cases skyrocketed in recent weeks. Idaho has one of the lowest vaccination rates in the U.S.

The agency cited "a severe shortage of staffing and available beds in the northern area of the state caused by a massive increase in patients with COVID-19 who require hospitalization."

The agency said its goal is to extend care to as many patients as possible and to save as many lives as possible.

According to the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare, hospitals and healthcare systems potentially affected are:

Panhandle Health District — Benewah Community Hospital, Bonner General Hospital, Boundary Community Hospital, Kootenai Health, Shoshone Medical Center.

North Central Health District — Gritman Medical Center, Clearwater Valley Hospital and Clinics, St. Joseph Regional Medical Center, St. Mary’s Hospitals & Clinics, Syringa Hospital & Clinics.

The move allows hospitals to allot scarce resources like intensive care unit rooms to patients most likely to survive.

Other patients will still receive care, but they may be placed in hospital classrooms or conference rooms rather than traditional hospital rooms or go without some life-saving medical equipment.

"Crisis standards of care is a last resort. It means we have exhausted our resources to the point that our healthcare systems are unable to provide the treatment and care we expect," Idaho Department of Health and Welfare Director Dave Jeppesen said in a statement.

He added: "This is a decision I was fervently hoping to avoid. The best tools we have to turn this around is for more people to get vaccinated and to wear masks indoors and in outdoor crowded public places. Please choose to get vaccinated as soon as possible – it is your very best protection against being hospitalized from COVID-19."

The designation will remain in effect until there are enough resources — including staffing, hospital beds and equipment or a drop in the number of patients — to provide normal levels of treatment to all.

More than 500 people were hospitalized statewide with COVID-19 on Sept. 1 — the most recent data available on the Department of Health and Welfare's website — and more than a third of them were in intensive care unit beds.

Idaho's hospitals have struggled to fill empty nursing, housekeeping and other health care positions, in part because some staffers have left because they are burned out by the strain of the pandemic and because others have been quarantined because they were exposed to COVID-19.

Sen. David Nelson, D-Moscow, urged people to get vaccinated immediately and continue to follow other health measures, like wearing a mask, to slow the spread.

“It’s beyond time for all of us to pull together," Nelson said Tuesday in a press release. "Your decision on getting vaccinated or using other mitigation affects many others. Our hospitals are full. Staff is overwhelmed. Please get vaccinated today.”