DES MOINES, Iowa — A spokesperson for UnityPoint Health said Monday that their Des Moines hospitals are very full, but if you have to be seen, you won't be turned away at this time.
"I can tell you that we are very full and very busy," Macinzie McFarland, a senior marketing communications specialist for UnityPoint Health, said in an email Monday. "We have seen a 25% increase in COVID patients from Friday to this morning. We are at our highest capacity but we are still admitting patients. We aren't turning people away."
McFarland said that increase has been at the UnityPoint Health - Des Moines hospitals.
As of Monday evening, Broadlawns Medical Center had seven COVID-19 patients, according to a hospital spokesperson.
"Our ICU is caring for patients with non-Covid-related conditions," Katie Wengert, chief marketing and external relations officer at Broadlawns Medical Center, said in an email Monday evening. "All three hospitals are working together to address the recent increase that UnityPoint and Mercy experienced over the weekend. Broadlawns will be accepting patients from Mercy and UnityPoint to balance the patient count."
Wengert said Broadlawns Medical Centers Urgent Cares also saw an increase in testing over the past few days.
She encouraged the public to continue with mitigation efforts, such as wearing masks and social distancing.
You should also be washing your hands frequently.
"The increase we have seen in hospitalizations is similar to what UnityPoint has seen — around 25 percent," a spokesperson for MercyOne Des Moines told Local 5.
The hospital has expanded areas for patients as COVID-19 cases increase, according to MercyOne.
"Physicians and leaders at MercyOne are continually assessing services to match care demands, bed availability and staffing. MercyOne is making decisions to delay some non-emergency surgeries and procedures to ensure the availability of care colleagues where they are needed most," the spokesperson said.
Stay with Local 5 for more information on this developing story.