How Close Are Raleigh Area Hospitals To Capacity? Latest

RALEIGH, NC — The continuing spread of the omicron coronavirus variant comes at a time when hospital systems in parts of the country are already being challenged by the delta variant.

Nationally, about 79 percent of inpatient beds were occupied as of Dec. 16, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. About 1 out of every 10 beds are occupied by a COVID-19 patient. Nearly 80 percent of ICU beds are filled, and 20 percent of all ICU beds are occupied by COVID-19 patients.

State health officials in North Carolina reported to the federal government Dec. 16 that approximately 79 percent of inpatient beds and 85 percent of ICU beds in hospitals across the state were occupied. Around 8 percent of inpatient beds and 10 percent of ICU beds statewide were filled by COVID-19 patients, they reported.

Coronavirus-related hospitalizations remain well below the national peak of 124,000 patients in January 2021 when vaccines were scarcely available. The current seven-day average is about 59,000 hospitalized coronavirus patients, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

However, the CDC projects that daily new COVID-19 hospital admissions will be somewhere between 6,300 and 18,400 patients by Jan. 7; the current seven-day average is about 7,800 daily admissions.

The latest hospitalization numbers from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services for Wake County, included below, are current through Dec. 3, and represent a rolling seven-day average. Note that the figures for occupied hospital beds sometimes exceed 100 percent; this is because more than one patient sometimes occupies a bed over the course of a week.

Health experts have said that the share of a hospital's total beds devoted to coronavirus cases is key to understanding the strain on its resources. A share greater than 10 percent is said to be a cause of concern. When that share exceeds 20 percent, a hospital is said to be under extreme stress; and as the share approaches 50 percent, the stress is said to be immense.

Below are the latest figures for hospitals in Wake County.

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DUKE HEALTH RALEIGH HOSPITAL
3400 WAKE FOREST RD, RALEIGH

• All adult inpatient beds: 152.6
• Inpatient beds occupied: 151.4
• Inpatient beds used by confirmed and suspected COVID-19 patients: 7.1
• Percent of inpatient beds used: 99.21%
• Percent of inpatient beds used by confirmed and suspected COVID-19 patients: 4.65%
• All adult ICU beds: 13.9
• ICU beds occupied: 12.7
• ICU beds used by confirmed and suspected COVID-19 patients: N/A
• Percent of ICU beds used: 91.37%
• Percent of ICU beds used by confirmed and suspected COVID-19 patients: N/A

WAKEMED
1900 KILDARE FARM ROAD, CARY

• All adult inpatient beds: 182
• Inpatient beds occupied: 149.3
• Inpatient beds used by confirmed and suspected COVID-19 patients: 9.1
• Percent of inpatient beds used: 82.03%
• Percent of inpatient beds used by confirmed and suspected COVID-19 patients: 5.00%
• All adult ICU beds: 16
• ICU beds occupied: 11
• ICU beds used by confirmed and suspected COVID-19 patients: N/A
• Percent of ICU beds used: 68.75%
• Percent of ICU beds used by confirmed and suspected COVID-19 patients: N/A

REX HOSPITAL
4420 LAKE BOONE TRAIL, RALEIGH

• All adult inpatient beds: 474.1
• Inpatient beds occupied: 421
• Inpatient beds used by confirmed and suspected COVID-19 patients: 34.1
• Percent of inpatient beds used: 88.80%
• Percent of inpatient beds used by confirmed and suspected COVID-19 patients: 7.19%
• All adult ICU beds: 64
• ICU beds occupied: 54.3
• ICU beds used by confirmed and suspected COVID-19 patients: 13.4
• Percent of ICU beds used: 84.84%
• Percent of ICU beds used by confirmed and suspected COVID-19 patients: 20.94%

WAKEMED
3000 NEW BERN AVE, RALEIGH

• All adult inpatient beds: 648
• Inpatient beds occupied: 573.3
• Inpatient beds used by confirmed and suspected COVID-19 patients: 41
• Percent of inpatient beds used: 88.47%
• Percent of inpatient beds used by confirmed and suspected COVID-19 patients: 6.33%
• All adult ICU beds: 80
• ICU beds occupied: 76.6
• ICU beds used by confirmed and suspected COVID-19 patients: 10.1
• Percent of ICU beds used: 95.75%
• Percent of ICU beds used by confirmed and suspected COVID-19 patients: 12.63%

Editor’s note: This list was automatically generated using data compiled by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The local hospitals included in the list are limited to those included in the government data, and the numbers reported by these hospitals to HHS have not been independently verified by Patch. Please report any errors or other feedback to content@patch.com.