Northwest Health practitioner issues warning on overwhelmed health care system

Covid patients.

They're tired and now worried- as area hospitals are on the brink of capacity.

Today, another local healthcare practitioner is sounding the alarm on the shaking healthcare system in northwest missouri.

Kilee thomas reportingsot: sarah sedlacek, northwest health practitioner- "there's a surge right now and we're having difficulty keeping up."

Sarah sedlacek has been on the frontlines of the covid pandemic since day onebut she says it's never been áthisá bad until now sot: sedlacek - "nearly everyone i'm testing is coming back positive."

This northwest health practitioner is another in a long list of healthcare workers speaking out -sounding the alarm that covid is in our community and it's getting worse.

Fast.

Sot: sedlacek - "our healthcare system is in crisis."

Buchanan county nearing 6,000 cases since the start of the pandemic and 80 deathsback in march- 10 cases.

0 deaths.

Sedlacek says positive cases are not only more frequent, they're more serious.

Sot: sedlacek - "and sicker.

I've had some patients that are a lot sicker than they were in the beginning back in march."

She says it's not just those with underlying conditions getting sick.it could be anyone.

Sot: sedlacek - and that's really scary because you just don't know.

Am i going to be the one that has the serious effect?

That's really scary."

Working the frontline of the pandemic is truly a daily, exhausting ábattleá sot: sedlacek - "covid is on my brain all day, producing.

I worry about my patients.

I worry about my family."

"it's stressful because we see our patients getting sick and feeling helpless and not being able to help them and going to the hospital.

The hospital is feeling particularly overwhelmed."thanksgiving is upon us.

Healthcare workers plea to stay home and stay safe because at the end of the day- there's only so many of them to go around.

Sot: sedlacek - "we do not want it to be a situation where our medical professionals have to decide who gets treatment and who doesn't."

Reporting in st.

Joseph, kilee thomas kq2 news health says lab's are getting overwhelmed by the volume of tests.

It now takes on average 5-7 days to get your test results back at northwest health.