Record number of coronavirus patients seen in Marshall County

Today - the two hospitals that make up the marshall medical centers are seeing the highest number of coronavirus in-patients since the pandemic started eight months ago!

Right now there are 38 inpatients at marshall medical north and south combined.

Waay 31's sophia borrelli is live in boaz at marshall medical south.

Sophia - why is capacity at that hospital a concern?

Here at marshall medical south - they have 12 i-c-u beds and every single one of them is taken by a person with coronavirus.

Hospital officials say they do have a plan in place if there arent enough i-c-u beds for patients.

Kathy woodruff, chief nursing officer marshall medical centers: "these patients don't have a quick turnaround, you know, they are very sick and they stay in the intensive care unit for a while.

So it is concerning.

We do have contingency plans for that if we were to get in a bind where we had more icu patients than we have beds.

We're not there yet, but we have a plan for that.

Marshall medical centers chief nursing officer kathy woorduff says that plan could include sending patients to other facilities.

Kathy woodruff, chief nursing officer marshall medical centers: "we're part of huntsville health system, and we can reach out to our sister hospitals, but the problem with that is, all of north alabama is kinda having a surge right now so their beds maybe full too so we do have some resources to reach out and we also have some other facilities we can reach out to."

Woodruff says with next week's thanksgiving holiday approaching she hopes people keep in mind the importance of social distancing especially since she says a lot of the people who they see in the hopsital say they have gotten it through being around family.

Kathy woodruff, chief nursing officer marshall medical centers: "there are a lot of family members that are admitted to the hospital, you know three at the same time or over a week's period, ot they'll come to the hospital and say well everyone in my family has it."

Woodruff also told me she doesn't know why they are seeing the most coronavirus in- patients they have ever seen - but says she believes halloween could be a factor.

Live in boaz - sophia waay 31 news.

Woodruff also says that even with the increase - the two hospitals have enough personal protective equipment and