University Hospitals Lake Health is temporarily closing its freestanding emergency department at UH Madison (Ohio) Health Center.
Operations at the ED, including lab and X-ray, will be suspended until Jan. 17, at which time the health system will reassess the move based on staffing numbers, according to a news release shared with Becker's.
Meanwhile, health system officials said staff will be reallocated to other UH Lake Health areas with the greatest need.
"As hospitals across the country are being impacted by the surge in COVID-19 patients, we remain committed to providing the safest and highest quality of care to our patients in Lake County and surrounding communities," UH Lake Health President Cynthia Moore-Hardy said in a news release. "This move is for an indefinite period of time as we address immediate needs. We appreciate the flexibility and dedication of our caregivers, who have served our hospitals and community heroically throughout the pandemic."
The closure of the freestanding ED at UH Madison Health Center came amid a COVID-19 surge. Overall, new daily COVID-19 hospitalization rates in the U.S. have risen 83 percent over the last two weeks, with Ohio seeing a 36 percent percent increase during that time period, according to HHS data tracked by The New York Times.
Other services at the UH Madison Health Center, including physical therapy and primary and specialty physician care, will remain open, health system officials said. Patients may also continue to use emergency departments at Concord Township, Ohio-based UH TriPoint Medical Center, Willoughby, Ohio-based UH Lake West Medical Center, and at UH hospitals in surrounding communities.