SALT LAKE CITY (ABC4) – Amid rapidly rising and an unsustainable volume of hospitalized COVID-19 patients, 13 Intermountain Healthcare hospitals are reverting back to a policy we haven’t seen in months – the postponement of non-urgent surgeries.
Intermountain Healthcare says its ICU beds are overwhelmingly full with COVID-19 patients who are not fully vaccinated and are younger than expected.
Dr. Marc Harrison, Intermountain Healthcare president and CEO, says not only are their beds overwhelmed, but their staff is also.
Starting September 15, Intermountain is postponing all non-urgent surgeries and procedures requiring hospital admission or postoperative inpatient monitoring in its trauma and community hospitals. This postponement will last for several weeks.
“When feasible, consolidation of remaining surgeries or procedures may take place to help free up surgical teams to be redeployed in our hospitals,” Intermountain reports.
The trauma and community hospitals where all non-urgent surgeries and procedures requiring a hospital admission will be postponed are:
- Logan Regional
- McKay-Dee (Ogden)
- Layton
- LDS Hospital (Salt Lake)
- Intermountain Medical Center (Murray)
- Riverton
- Alta View (Sandy)
- Park City
- American Fork
- Utah Valley (Provo)
- Spanish Fork
- Cedar City
- St. George
Rural hospitals, TOSH, and Primary Children’s will continue to do non-urgent surgeries and procedures requiring hospital admission. Intermountain says these facilities may postpone some cases as needed depending on circumstances.
“While this pause in surgeries may create challenges for some patients, it is a necessary and appropriate step given the sharp spike in hospitalizations for patients with COVID-19. Any patient affected by the postponements will be directly notified by telephone. Postponed procedures will be rescheduled after the surge subsides. Intermountain will continue to provide care for urgent situations and emergency patients as it always does,” the healthcare system says.
