Jacksonville, Fla.-based Baptist Health is asking its surgeons to delay some elective surgeries that require an overnight stay because of an uptick in COVID-19 hospitalizations, News4Jax reported July 14.
Baptist Health said 179 people were hospitalized as of July 14, a 23 percent increase over July 13, when 145 people were hospitalized.
"As we constantly review our COVID-19 patient census, we are working with our surgeons to manage the number of elective surgical procedures that require overnight admission to the hospital," Wesley Roberts, a spokesperson for Baptist Health, told News4Jax. "It is very important to note that many patients are still able to have their procedures as originally scheduled, while others who have been contacted by their surgeon will be given a new surgery date."