CRMC at record number of COVID patients

By Michelle Price
Special to the UCBJ

COOKEVILLE – The number of COVID patients at Cookeville Regional Medical Center (CRMC) has increased at a record pace and there are now 117 inpatient cases with 29 of those in the Intensive Care Unit and 20 on ventilators. 

Since Aug. 1, the numbers of COVID patients seen at CRMC has rapidly grown. In late July the hospital’s weekly average was admitting five COVID patients per week. Those numbers have almost doubled weekly growing from 11 (8/1) to 20 to 36 to 56 and as of the week of Sept 5 averaging 86 patients per week being admitted for COVID.

There have been 20 COVID related deaths since Aug. 1. 

In an effort to accommodate the increased number of patients, CRMC has added an additional ER waiting area, converted a surgical recovery unit into a COVID ICU and has temporarily closed some services such as cardiac rehab and the Sleep Center in order to make their staff available to assist with the overflow of patients.

According to the Tennessee Department of Health, there are 1,024 active cases of COVID in Putnam County with 175 new cases today. 

Twenty-five percent of those cases are school related with 151 confirmed positive cases in the Putnam County Schools System and 107 active cases related to Tennessee Tech University.

Michelle Price is the former managing editor of the Upper Cumberland Business Journal and can be reached via email. Send an email.

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