UW Medicine’s Emergency Operations Center (EOC) reports on our ability to maintain normal operations using a scale from “monitoring” to “high level of activation” based on information about community transmission rates, hospital admissions, staffing capacity, space availability, PPE supplies and other impacts on the health system.
This update provides a quick look at some of the key data used by the EOC to determine UW Medicine’s current level of activation. For more detailed information, you can review the EOC’s situation status reports.
EOC Level of Activation
May 10, 2022: The EOC is at a Low-Mid Level of Activation based on current numbers for COVID-19 admissions, staffing capacity and community transmission. COVID-19 patients represent 2.76% of hospital admissions. UW Medicine hospitals are caring for 32 patients with COVID-19. As of yesterday, 193 employees were on leave due to COVID-19 isolation and quarantine.
UW Medicine COVID-19 Inpatients
Daily Capacity Data Report
The Daily Capacity Data Report shows the total occupancy and the number of COVID-19 patients at each hospital.
Employees Out of Office Due to COVID-19
This chart shows the number of employees on leave due to COVID-19 isolation and quarantine on representative days between December 28, 2021, and May 9, 2022.
King County and Washington State Epidemiology
King County: Public Health – Seattle & King County is reporting 405,088 cases and 2,755 deaths as of May 9. The number of new cases over the last seven days is currently at 304.5 per 100,000 people.
Washington: The Department of Health reports 1,519,327 total cases and 12,742 deaths as of May 8.
EOC Priorities
EOC Level of Activation (New): The EOC is considering whether to move next week to a higher level of activation based on increasing transmission rates in King County, the high overall census at UW Medicine hospitals, increasing numbers of COVID-19 patients, and impacts on staffing and PPE supplies. For reference, the seven-day rate of new cases per 100,000 people in King County has increased from 50.5 on March 21 to 304.5 today.
Vaccine Second Boosters (Clarification for Employees Living With People Who Are Immunocompromised or Not Vaccinated): Second boosters are only available for people who meet current CDC eligibility guidelines (see Thinking About Getting a Second COVID-19 Vaccine Booster for a PDF version of the guidelines). UW Medicine provides second booster doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna COVID-19 vaccines to all individuals 50 years and older who received their first booster shot at least four months prior. Certain immunocompromised individuals ages 12 and older also are eligible for a second Pfizer or Moderna booster shot at least four months after their first booster dose, as are individuals ages 18 and older who received the Johnson & Johnson vaccine for both their primary series and first booster.
Vaccine Clinic (Upcoming): Due to lower demand, UW Medical Center – Northwest will close its mass vaccination site on May 16.
COVID-19 Therapeutics (New): The EOC is increasing outreach to patients with limited English proficiency and people from underserved communities on how to self-attest to eligibility and be added to a scheduling waitlist for Evusheld, a monoclonal antibody therapy for pre-exposure prevention. The EOC is also partnering with the Contact Center and UW Medicine Primary Care on workflows to ensure timely access to primary or urgent care telemedicine appointments for patients who are eligible to receive COVID-19 oral antiviral prescriptions.
Stay Informed
Employee News:
- Dr. John Lynch COVID-19 Update (May 5)
In the Media:
- A COVID mystery: Some people never get sick even after being exposed to the virus, Michael Gale and Michael Davis, Immunology, KOMO News/MSN
- Coronavirus wave this fall could infect 100 million, administration warns, Ali Mokdad, IHME, The Washington Post
- Ethicist: Crisis-care protocols should ignore patients’ age, Nancy Jecker, Bioethics, UW Medicine Newsroom
Ongoing communications:
- Emergency Operations Updates: Scheduled for Tuesdays.
- Dr. John Lynch COVID-19 Update: Scheduled for Thursdays every two weeks.
- Town Halls: Generally scheduled for 3 p.m. on Fridays; Check your email for announcements (recordings available).
- Community Conversations: Check you email for dates and times (recordings available).
- EOC Situation Reports: Posted on the UW Medicine intranet (AMC login required).
- Leadership Messages and Employee Resources: Posted on The Huddle.
Sincerely,
UW Medicine Leadership
