Out of heat wave and into a holiday, hospitals are ready

Hospitals tend to be busy places during the summer. Add in a spell of historically hot weather, and the number of people needing care increases dramatically.

“We saw over 100 patients for heat-related conditions,” says Lisa Brandenburg, president of UW Medicine hospitals and clinics.

Brandenburg says UW Medicine is also seeing a rise in patients who did not seek routine care through the COVID-19 pandemic. And the next patient influx awaits: Independence Day weekend, historically infamous for fireworks and summer-related injuries.

“We are ready to take care of any patients who need us,” says Brandenburg. “Everybody wants to celebrate. We want to stress: Please don't go crazy this year.”

Meanwhile, clinicians have welcomed a decreasing volume of COVID-19 patients. As July began, the number of inpatients being treated for COVID-19 is less than 20.