The Arizona Department of Health Services launched a statewide system that allows hospitals to coordinate COVID-19 patient admission, transfer and discharge to prevent facilities from becoming overwhelmed by potential patient surges.
The Arizona health department manages the free, 24/7 service, and Arizona hospitals have agreed to share near real-time bed and ventilator status through the system to quickly place patients if beds are available.
"As we've learned from other states, it is critical to protect our healthcare system to ensure that no region of the state is overwhelmed by COVID-19 patients while another region's hospitals remain empty and ready to serve," said Cara Christ, MD, Arizona health department director, according to a news release.