Daily Stats (Updated 3/31/2020 at 5:30 pm)
- As of today, Lee Health has:
- 29 COVID-19 patients isolated in our hospitals
- Submitted 2,785 specimens for testing
- Discharged 14 patients
- 140 employees quarantined; 7 employees exposed at work and positive with COVID-19
- Click here for table showing specimens sent to the lab, positive cases currently in our hospitals, presumptive positive cases and telemedicine visits.
Today’s News
Gulf Coast Medical Center Expansion
The 216-bed expansion at Gulf Coast Medical Center will officially open this Thursday, April 2, two months ahead of schedule. With the expansion, the hospital will now have 250 beds for COVID-19 patients and persons under investigation (PUIs), who will be together in these cohort units, separated from our other patients. The hospital will also have 18 additional negative pressure isolation rooms and 76 overflow ICU beds to treat COVID-19 patients. We appreciate the efforts of our Lee Health team and community partners, especially our contractors, equipment providers, supply chain, information technology, facilities planning, ancillary services and many others for expediting the completion and opening of the expansion. We are #LeeHealthStrong and we are ready to do all we can to care for our community.Updated Visitation Guidelines in OB Units and Golisano Children’s Hospital
We have updated visitation guidelines in our OB units have changed and now allow only one consistent support person per patient. Additionally, beginning April 1, and until further notice, Golisano Children’s Hospital will be limiting visitation to one parent or support person and no children younger than 12 will be allowed to accompany or stay with a patient in the children’s hospital. With both OB and our pediatric patients, we recommend families stay in contact using virtual means, like Skype, FaceTime and phone calls.Blood Drive Success
We are thrilled to share that we received a record number of blood donations in March; this could have not been possible without the support of our community. Just two weeks ago, we were short nearly 1,000 units due to blood drive cancellations. We sincerely appreciate our community coming to our aid and providing lifesaving blood donations. Stay tuned for information regarding upcoming community blood drives. Our Blood Centers continue to accept donations, call 343-2333 to make an appointment.Mobile Food Pantry Distributions and “Grab and Go” Meal Pick-Up Locations
To help those in our community who are food insecure, Lee County and their community partners are currently providing food assistance resources through mobile food pantry distributions and meal pick-up programs. If you know someone who could benefit from these mobile pantries, we have compiled the list of locations, dates and times here.
~6,490 positive cases in Florida residents and 251 positive cases in non-Florida residents~
TALLAHASSEE — To keep Florida residents and visitors safe, informed and aware about the status of the virus, the Florida Department of Health has launched a COVID-19 dashboard that will be updated twice daily. Today, as of 6 p.m., there are 6,741 total** Florida cases.
While Florida’s testing has increased over the past week, the percent of those testing positive for COVID-19 overall is 11 percent. Of the 7,474 tests performed on March 30, there were 1,006 positive results, or 13 percent.
Eight people have died who tested positive for COVID-19 in Dade, Lee, Manatee, Palm Beach and Sarasota counties.
New Florida cases include:
- 403 additional positive COVID-19 cases (394 Florida residents and 9 non-Florida residents) reported to the Florida Department of Health.
- There are currently 6,490 positive cases in Florida residents and 251 positive cases in non-Florida residents.
Florida recently partnered with private laboratories around the state to expand COVID-19 laboratory testing capacity. This partnership will increase the number of tests conducted each day and ensure Floridians receive the critical health information they need in a timely manner.
Expansion to private laboratories changes the COVID-19 testing landscape in Florida. Private laboratories are running tests as they receive swab samples from practitioners. Testing and reporting times vary among commercial and DOH laboratories. Demographic information may be updated during investigations. These twice daily reports reflect the state’s efforts to accurately and transparently share information.
World Health Organization Update
SITUATION IN NUMBERS total (new) cases in last 24 hours
(last updated 10:00 AM CET 3/31/2020)
Globally 750,890 confirmed (57,610)
36,405 deaths (3,301)
Western Pacific Region 104,868 confirmed (1093)
3671 deaths (22)
European Region 423,946 confirmed (31,131)
26,694 deaths (2,733)
South-East Asia Region 4,215 confirmed (131)
166 deaths (8)
Eastern Mediterranean Region 50,349 confirmed (4,020)
2,954 deaths (142)
Region of the Americas 163,014 confirmed (20,935)
2,836 deaths (379)
African Region 3,786 confirmed (300)
77 deaths (17)
Highlights
- No new countries/territories/areas reported cases of COVID-19 in the past 24
hours. - As mentioned by the Director-General in his regular media briefing yesterday,
ensuring free movement of essential health products is vital for saving lives
and curbing the social and economic impacts of the pandemic. WHO is
working intensively with partners to increase access to life-saving products,
including diagnostics, PPE, medical oxygen, ventilators and more. For more
information: https://www.who.int/dg/speeches/detail/who-director-generals-opening-remarks-at-the-media-briefing-on-covid-19—30-march-2020 - Operations support and logistics continues to monitor critical markets and in
partnership with the Pandemic Supply Chain Network, has increased
engagement and coordination with private companies. Since the beginning of
the outbreak, OSL has shipped more than 800 000 surgical masks, 54 000 N95
masks, 873 000 gloves, 15 000 goggles and 24 000 face shields to 75 countries.
OSL has also shipped COVID-19 testing kits to 126 countries. For more details,
please see ‘subject in focus’.