ROCHESTER, N.Y. – The healthcare crisis in our community continues as hospitals are filled to capacity and the rise of flu cases is pushing them to a breaking point.

120% capacity, that’s what Strong Hospital is at right now. On Tuesday, there were 1145 admitted patients, one of the highest numbers they’ve ever seen.”

 Steve Corona experienced the overcrowding firsthand when his brother was recently admitted to Strong.

“We were just appalled by the waiting room, it was dystopian really,” Corona says. “My brother was shoved up against the wall, in a bed and there were people running back and forth I mean, narrow, narrow hallways, you could just barely make it.”

Even on a good day, there are not enough beds in our local emergency rooms.

“We have less hospital beds per capita than anywhere else in the state,” says Dr. Michael Apostolakos, the Chief Medical Officer of Strong and Highland Hospitals.

The combination of a surge in the flu and hospitals being unable to find enough nursing home beds for patients who need them has made things go from bad to worse.

“People are getting care in the hallways; We’re bringing the equipment and the staff to take care of them but it’s not a comfortable environment for them right now,” Dr. Apostolakos says.

There is major construction underway at Strong Hospital to expand the emergency department, but phase one isn’t set to be complete until 2026.

“The ED will be three times the size of the current ED so even if we’re caring for as many patients in the emergency room, they will all have a private space, they will be able to be separated and it will definitely be more comfortable,” explains Dr. Apostolakos.

However, it’s not until phase two of the project, the tower, where more beds will be added. That isn’t scheduled to be complete until 2027.

“We will get somewhere between 20 and 40 more inpatient beds and it will give us more flexibility if we did need to take private rooms and make them double in order to move patients from the emergency room to the inpatient setting,” says Dr. Apostolakos.

For now, the advice is simple. If you think you’re in a life-or-death situation, you should of course visit the hospital. If you’re just not feeling well, try your doctor or an urgent care first. The doctors at Urgent Care are some of the same ones who work in the emergency room and they’ll let you know right away if you need a different level of care.

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