A field hospital for COVID-19 patients in Memphis, Tenn., won't open yet, and a shortage of nurses and healthcare workers is part of the reason why, according to the Daily Memphian.
Richard Walker, MD, an emergency medicine physician who leads the 400-bed field hospital, told the publication that "there are plenty of beds available. The problem is with the nursing shortage, there are hundreds of beds we can't staff now."
He added that "it doesn't make sense to me or to the governor to open the alternate care center and put people in there when they could get better care at the major hospital down the street."
His statement comes as patients in Memphis are facing long waits in emergency rooms to access care, according to the report.
As of Dec. 15, Tennessee is the state where COVID-19 is spreading the fastest.