Some major hospitals in Mexico City are completely full with coronavirus patients, Deputy Health Minister Hugo López-Gatell said Wednesday as Mexico recorded its second consecutive day of more than 10,000 new cases and 800 Covid-19 deaths.
“In Mexico City, … there are hospitals that are completely full, some of the national health institutes [for example]. It’s the same in other federal entities,” he told the Health Ministry’s coronavirus press briefing, adding that large hospitals tend to fill up the quickest.
An interactive map on the Mexico City government website shows that numerous Covid-19 designated hospitals in the capital are at capacity. Among those that are full are the National Institute of Medical Sciences and Nutrition, the Central Military Hospital, the Ignacio Zaragoza General Hospital and the Tacuba General Hospital.
Data presented by López-Gatell showed that 63% of all general care hospital beds set aside for coronavirus patients in Mexico City are currently occupied while 61% of those with ventilators are in use.
According to Mexico City government statistics updated on Wednesday night, 2,722 coronavirus patients are in general care beds in the capital and 831 are intubated.
Across Mexico, 11,124 of 29,193 general care beds are currently occupied by coronavirus patients for an occupancy rate of 38%.
Durango, one of two red light “maximum” risk states on the federal government coronavirus stoplight system, has the highest occupancy rate for general care beds at 75%. Zacatecas and Coahuila follow with occupancy rates of 65% and 64%, respectively.
As for beds with ventilators, 3,335 of 10,538 are in use for an occupancy rate of 32%. Mexico City has the highest occupancy rate for critical care beds followed by Aguascalientes and Zacatecas, which have rates of 57% and 51%, respectively.
López-Gatell urged people to seek medical attention as soon as they develop any symptoms of the coronavirus such as a fever or cough. He reiterated that people with chronic diseases, those aged over 60 and pregnant women are more susceptible to serious illness.
Earlier in the press briefing, the deputy minister reported that Mexico’s accumulated case tally had increased to 1,070,487 with 10,335 new cases registered. It was the second day in a row that more than 10,000 cases were reported after the tally spiked by 10,794 on Tuesday.
The official Covid-19 death toll increased to 103,597 with an additional 858 fatalities registered – 45 more than the number reported on Tuesday.
López-Gatell said that six states – Coahuila, Nuevo León, Zacatecas, Aguascalientes, Querétaro and Mexico City – are at risk of joining Chihuahua and Durango as red light states.
Those six states are among 14 that are currently classified as orange light “high” risk on the stoplight system.
There are also 14 yellow light “medium” risk states while the risk of coronavirus infection in two states – Campeche and Chiapas –is green light “low.”
Source: Infobae (sp)
