As of Tuesday, Oct. 13 midnight, Bryan Health in Lincoln has 490 non-COVID patients and 43 COVID-positive patients. Bob Ravenscroft is Bryan’s Vice President for Advancement and said the patient census is not unusual, but longer hospital stays for COVID-19 patients can contribute to capacity issues.
"Length of stay is a metric that we use regularly and our average length of stay for patients is essentially 4.6 days. Whereas for COVID-19 patients, that can be up to 21 days, sometimes months," Ravenscroft said.
The hospital’s typical capacity is between 490 and 550 patients. Ravenscroft said Bryan Health has confidence in their ability to handle the patient load, but urges people to help by wearing a mask and practicing social distancing.