“WE ARE AS FULL AS WE HAVE EVER BEEN DURING PANDEMIC.”
BY: STAFF REPORT | BocaNewsNow.com
BOCA RATON, FL (BocaNewsNow.com) (Copyright © 2021 MetroDesk Media, LLC) — Don’t believe people claiming that hospitals are empty and COVID is fake. Leaders of JFK Medical Center — the largest hospital in Palm Beach County — said the hospital is nearing capacity, largely with unvaccinated COVID-19 victims.
Dr. Raymond Golish, Chief Medical Officer for JFK Medical Center, said “the simple fact is that as a hospital as large as JFK we are, for now, able to care for people who come to us for service. We are as full as we have been during any time during the pandemic.”
But both Dr. Golish, and his ER Director, said the hospital is nearing a danger zone.
“We are at a point it looks like the numbers are continuing to skyrocket, and without vaccination, we will not win,” said JFK ER Director Dr. Mazyar Rouhani. He said the hospital just expanded its ER to nearly 100 beds.
Speaking at a Monday afternoon news conference, Dr. Alina Alonso, joined by the JFK Hospital officials, said that the problem continues to be the unvaccinated in Palm Beach County. She said the positivity rate in Palm Beach County is just below Florida’s average of 17 percent.
“It is extremely high,” said Dr. Alonso, Director of the Palm Beach County Division of the Florida Department of Health.
According to Dr. Alonso, numbers started to surge in the area after residents and visitors here acted like COVID was over on July 4th. From that point forward, COVID-19 rates have skyrocketed. said numbers dropped after the July 4th holiday last year, not the case this year.
“We knew that the Fourth of July was a super-spreader across the country and it was here as well,” said Dr. Alonso.”The only way out of this is through vaccination. We have to make sure at this time we vaccinate, vaccinate, vaccinate. We need everyone’s help to get this done. We must erase the misinformation that is out there.”
Palm Beach County Mayor David Kerner, when asked about possible mask mandates, eluded to the inability of local governments to take decisive action due to restrictions set by Florida Governor Ron DeSantis. Kerner said it’s up to people to make decisions that keep themselves, and others, safe.
“We know what we need to do to keep ourselves and others safe. Wear a mask,” said Kerner. “(And) get the vaccine. We are back up here because we are concerned.”
Kerner, Dr. Alonso, and the JFK Doctors all said that misinformation shared by the Anti-Vaxxers and anti-maskers on social media is dangerous, wrong, and is causing the problems everyone is now experiencing.
