(Updated 7/10/2020 at 8:00 pm)

Today’s Stats

Lee Health has:

As of today, Lee Health has:

  • 301 COVID-19 patients isolated in our hospitals
  • Submitted 33,467 specimens for testing
  • Discharged 1,248 patients since the start of the pandemic
  • 380 employees quarantined; 19 employees exposed at work and positive with COVID-19
  • Currently 63% of our ventilators and 9% of our ICU rooms are available for use
  • Current census is at 97.1% of staffed operational bed capacity, with 24% of those being COVID-19 patients.
  • Click here for graphs showing a running total of specimens collected for testing and positive cases hospitalized.

Today’s News

A Message from Dr. Larry Antonucci

Throughout this pandemic Lee Health has prioritized transparency because community members must have the clearest possible picture of the spread of COVID-19 to make the safest decisions for themselves and their families. It is in this vein that starting today, we will be changing how we report out our bed capacity.

 

Over the years, when Lee Health referred to bed capacity, we were referring to the number of beds for which we are licensed. It’s a firm number that doesn’t change, unless we open an expansion. The reality is the number of beds that are available for patients changes seasonally, based on the volume of patients we are caring for in our hospitals. Typically, during season, we have all of our licensed beds open, but in the summer months we close units because the beds are not needed.

 

This year is different. For the first time in memory, and due to the pandemic, we are experiencing a high volume of patients during the summer months. It is important for our community to be fully informed about their access to critical health care, particularly at this time.

 

Going forward we will report out capacity based on staffed operational beds. As we work through our surge plan, the number of operational beds in our health system will vary daily, based on our ability to provide the appropriate staffing level. We intend to increase the number of operational beds to the best of our resources available.

 

With that said, our current census is at 97.1% of operational bed capacity. As a comparison, licensed bed capacity is at 82%. You shouldn’t be alarmed that we are approaching our capacity, as the number changes throughout the day as patients are admitted and discharged. You can be confident that your health system will continue to provide exceptional care for every patient who needs it. We are working our surge plan, including reducing elective surgeries and bringing in more staff, to open additional beds.

 

Every statistic we report out isn’t just a number. It’s a person with friends and family who are concerned about their well-being. I do not ask our community to heed safety precautions simply to lower our capacity, but to remind you that every number is a person who is battling a serious illness and we all can take action to spare hundreds of our fellow Southwest Floridians from having to fight that same battle.

 

Get Tested for COVID-19 at Local Mobile Collection Sites

Lee  Health public health experts provide mobile collection sites to test members of our community for COVID-19 safely and efficiently. There are additional local mobile collection sites not affiliated with Lee Health that provides COVID-19 testing as well. For a full list of COVID-19 mobile testing locations, including sites not run by Lee Health, and for information on who can get tested and how to make an appointment, click here.

 

Recovered from COVID-19? Donate Convalescent Plasma
If you have recovered from COVID-19, join us in supporting our patients by donating plasma for the Mayo Clinic’s COVID-19 Convalescent Plasma Study. Lee Health is in immediate need of convalescent plasma donations to help refill supply levels and aid patients currently fighting COVID-19 in our hospitals. Convalescent plasma is blood plasma collected from COVID-19 survivors, which is then used to treat critically-ill patients as part of the clinical trial.

 

If you have previously tested positive for COVID-19, and have been symptom-free for two weeks, and you later tested negative for the virus, please consider donating blood. Email COVID.Plasma@LeeHealth.org to volunteer.

 

All convalescent plasma donations collected by Lee Health stay in our community and are used exclusively for Lee Health patients.

 

Donate Blood at Our Upcoming Blood Drives

In partnership with local businesses and community partners, the Lee Health Bloodmobile is making multiple stops in our community next week.

 

Having a well-stocked inventory of blood is crucial for our community, as blood helps patients heal from surgeries, diseases and traumatic injuries. All blood collected by Lee Health stays here to care for people in our community.

 

We conduct blood drives using appropriate infection control measures to ensure the safety of the products, donors and staff. Please consider donating blood at any of these blood drives:

 

  • Lehigh Acres Fire Control and Rescue District Station 102,11 Homestead Road S from 9 a.m. – 1 p.m., Monday, July 13.  All donors will receive a “thank you” gift from Lee Health.
  • Chick-fil-A at 1790 NE Pine Island Road in Cape Coral from 12 – 5 p.m., Thursday, July 16. Each donor will receive one Chick-fil-A meal coupon for one pint of blood.
  • Texas Roadhouse,  8021 Dani Drive in Fort Myers from 3 – 8 p.m., Thursday, July 16. All donors will receive a free appetizer from Texas Roadhouse  .
  • The 2nd annual Jobbers-Miller blood drive, in honor of fallen Fort Myers Police Officer Adam Jobbers-Miller, is July 21-23. Lee Memorial Hospital will host the blood drive from 9 a.m-3 p.m., Tuesday, July 21, and Wednesday, July 22. On Thursday, July 23, the blood drive will be held from 9 a.m.-3 p.m., at the Fort Myers Police Department.

Reserve Your Spot for Our Next Virtual Town Hall

Join us on Facebook Live for a virtual town hall meeting at 2 p.m., Wednesday, July 22 to learn more about COVID-19 and its impact on children. We have assembled a panel of Golisano Children’s Hospital leaders, including Armando Llechu, MBA, chief administrative officer , Emad Salman, M.D., pediatric hematology oncologist, Stephanie Stovall, M.D., medical director of quality and safety and Alyssa Bostwick, MBA, MSN, RN, program development coordinator. Along with sharing how to keep children safe during the COVID-19 outbreak, our leaders will answer audience questions.  Click here for more information and to join the event on Facebook.

 

Sign Up for Free Virtual Classes with the Healthy Life Center

Check out the Healthy Life Center July virtual class schedule for classes, support group meetings, screenings and more. All July classes are offered as free resources and will be held virtually through WebEx, which can be accessed via your computer, smartphone or tablet. Upon registration, you will receive instructions and codes to join at the live class time. Click here to sign up for any of our classes or call 468-0050 to secure your spot.