While hospitals around Washington are reporting high staff vaccination rates, healthcare leaders are still concerned about understaffed facilities being overwhelmed as flu season kicks off, according to an Oct. 4 Seattle Times report.
Swedish Health Services is reporting 92 percent of its workers are fully vaccinated, with more expected, and Tacoma-based Multicare Health System is reporting vaccination rates over 90 percent as of Monday morning. Healthcare workers with religious or medical exemptions will not be required to get vaccinated.
Taya Briley, executive vice president of the Washington State Hospital Association, said while COVID-19 trends are decreasing, hospitals are still struggling to "battle" the effects of patients that experienced delayed care in the most recent surge and to find spots for patients at long-term care facilities.
“If long-term care facilities cannot accept the patients who are ready for discharge, our hospitals will then be unable to accept patients in need of true acute care,” Ms. Briley said.