Page 8 - SFHN Dec 2020

New England Journal of Medicine Features Uhealth’s Expertise

in Handling Elective Surgeries During Pandemic Surges

Tanira B.D. Ferreira, Health System’s planned pandemic surges addresses patients’ ICU capability,” Dr. Ferreira said. “When
M.D., FCCP, chief medical approach, which fell in the needs and safety, as well as the financial we anticipated the spike back in June
officer of University of middle of the other two. It stability of the hospital. and July, we had isolated negative pres-
Miami Hospital and was to proceed with sched- “Importantly, we developed a model sure rooms for 150 COVID patients at
Clinics, was one of three uled elective surgical proce- that allows us to locally predict what the one point. Now the COVID-19 census is
authors featured in the dures but defer new cases expected census would be for our organ- low, and those rooms have been convert-
New England Journal of when needed if bed avail- ization within 7 to 14 days in advance. ed back to regular rooms.”
Medicine for her expertise ability was limited So, we can plan for the increased beds A lot goes into preparing for a surge,
in how to manage elective “The scenario in the arti- we will need for COVID-19 patients, including staffing the COVID units and
surgeries during COVID- cle was very similar to what while safely caring for non-COVID-19 having the needed ventilators, medica-
19 surges. we experienced here in patients,” Dr. Ferreira said. “We now tions, and personal protective equip-
Elective procedures are Miami in June and July. It have a projection of a potential third ment ready to go. It also involves creat-
low- and intermediate- gave us the opportunity to spike by the third week of November. As ing a team to safely discharge patients to
acuity procedures than can share the extraordinary a result, we are in the process of execut- make more beds available during a
be safely delayed without Dr. Tanira B.D. Ferreira work at UHealth Tower, ing our surge plan so we can implement surge. Built into the plan is the ability to
substantial patient risk. when we were able it when needed.” work in elective procedures with greater
The Clinical Decisions article pub- throughout the second spike of this pan- The University of Miami Health urgency or risk if those cases are
lished Oct. 29 documents three demic to run full, almost normal hospi- System had already developed its predic- deferred.
approaches to managing elective surgery tal operations and at the same time man- tive model in May, when Florida “Our hospital is prepared for the next
given the same scenario. In the mock age the COVID-19 surge,” said Dr. Governor Ron DeSantis lifted the state’s surge in this pandemic. The comprehen-
scenario, a hospital’s census was higher Ferreira, who is also associate professor restrictions on elective procedures. The sive plan is so well thought out that it
than 90% of capacity, with almost all of clinical medicine at the Miller School UHealth Tower model involves imple- caught the attention of one of the most
intensive care unit beds occupied, more of Medicine. “In essence, we created a menting vertical isolation. For instance, prestigious scientific journals in the
than half by patients with COVID-19. way in our surge plan for the hospital to a COVID-19 positive patient who comes U.S.,” Dr. Ferreira said. “Having a plan
One of the authors made a case for manage COVID-19 and non-COVID-19 into the emergency department is imme- that safely accommodates COVID-19
deferring elective surgical procedures, patients safely and effectively within the diately isolated to a special unit. and non-COVID-19 patients in a single
and another author presented a case for same institution.” “The hospital has 13 floors. We con- institution during a pandemic surge is
continuing all elective procedures. Dr. UHealth’s comprehensive approach to verted the highest penthouse floor to no small effort. The entire UHealth
Ferreira shared the University of Miami managing elective procedures during COVID-19 negative pressure rooms with Tower mobilized to create it.”

8 December 2020 southfloridahospitalnews.com South Florida Hospital News