Salt Lake City-based University of Utah Hospital reached 95 percent capacity in its intensive care unit Oct. 8 amid a major COVID-19 surge in the state, reports The Salt Lake Tribune.
Utah reported a record number of new COVID-19 cases (1,501) and hospitalizations (237) Oct. 8. Statewide, 73 percent of ICU beds were occupied; the state's goal is to keep this figure under 85 percent.
"Our healthcare workers are tired, they’re suffering, and they don’t want to see another person die alone of a preventable infection," Emily Spivak, MD, an infectious disease physician at University of Utah Health, said during an Oct. 8 news conference, according to The Salt Lake Tribune.
As of the morning of Oct. 8, University of Utah Hospital's intensive care unit was at 95 percent capacity, according to Dr. Spivak. She strongly urged Utah residents to wear masks to help control the virus's spread in the state.
In the last week, 13.7 percent of COVID-19 tests have been positive in Utah. In early September, this figure hovered around 9 percent but steadily increased through the end of the month.
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