'Help. Please Get Vaccinated,' Ohio Hospitals Say In New Video

CLEVELAND — The steady pump and hiss of a ventilator is the only sound accompanying a new video from Cleveland's hospitals begging Northeast Ohioans to get vaccinated.

There are no pictures and no video footage in the clip, only flashing text that says, "Help. We're begging you. Ohio's ICU's are overloaded with COVID-19 patients. The majority unvaccinated. This is preventable. Please. Get your vaccine and your booster. Wear a mask. Social distance. And get tested. But, not at the ER. We need you to care as much as we do."

The video is less than 30 seconds long. Its message was endorsed by the Cleveland Clinic, University Hospitals, MetroHealth, Summa Health, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and St. Vincent Charity Medical Center.

As of Wednesday morning, there were 1,225 COVID-19-positive patients in northern Ohio hospitals, according to the Ohio Hospital Association. Of those, 314 are in intensive care units (one out of every three ICU patients in the region are COVID-19 positive).

Northeast Ohio medical leaders have been ringing the alarm for weeks, warning of surging COVID-19 cases, crowded hospitals and exhausted staff. On Tuesday, the Cleveland Clinic and University Hospitals held a joint news conference during which doctors and nurses begged Ohioans to get vaccinated, to wear masks in public and to avoid large gatherings.

Both the omicron and delta variants of COVID-19 are surging in Northeast Ohio. Positivity rates are the highest they've ever been in the region, according to Dr. Daniel Simon, chief scientific officer, University Hospitals. More COVID-19 patients are now being treated in University Hospitals than at any previous time.

Cuyahoga County now has one of the highest rates of COVID-19 spread in the nation, with 199 cases per 100,000 residents, the New York Times reported this week.

The vast majority of COVID-19 patients in intensive care units are unvaccinated — approximately 90 percent — said Dr. Raed Dweik, chairman of Cleveland Clinic's Respiratory Institute.

"These are alarming numbers and it's no wonder our hospitals are filling up with COVID-19 patients," Dweik said.