I3: With half the number of available beds for non-COVID-19 patients, the ED serves up to 75% of its usual routine demand
With half the number of beds, the ED cannot serve its usual routine demand. The ED reaches its capacity at 75% maximum capacity under routine conditions and hospital design. At typical routine demand levels (200 per day), a daily average of 10 patients admitted to the ED will require transfer or an alternative care path.
The model replicated a typical US urban 200-bed tertiary hospital with:
- 20 ICU beds shared between COVID-19 and routine patient arrivals
- 20 ED beds and 25 critical decision unit beds (converted from 40 ED beds)
- 70 isolation rooms (taking 50 of the internal general ward (IGW) beds)
- Separate COVID-19 entry
- 10% COVID-19 patients to ICU with average 9-day stay in ICU (2.8 realized average ICU stay for routine patients)
COVID-19 Care Paths & Assumptions (pdf)
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