File photo
File photo
McDonough District Hospital has resumed elective surgeries, with the approval of the Department of Surgery and chief medical officer Dr. Ed Card.
Card suggested that scheduling two elective surgeries in different rooms with a surgeon moving between the rooms would be most efficient.
“It takes 20 minutes at the start and 20 minutes at the end to allow for an air exchange,” he said.
Previously, a three-member committee has been approving any non-elective surgeries at McDonough District Hospital.
Hospital CEO Brian Dietz told the board that there had been an 85-90 percent drop in outpatient testing due to COVID-19, and that clinical staff has been retained to resume work. That could change, however, if a large number of COVID-19 patients are admitted. He also said that the hospital’s approach to restoring services must be careful because he believes COVID-19 efforts could continue for 18 months more.
“We’ll be doing this until a vaccine is developed,” he said, “and that could be four years away.”
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