COVID-19 surge has Asante delaying many elective surgeries

Jenna King July 29, 2021

Last Updated: July 29, 2021

Medford, Ore. —Local hospitals are beginning to feel the impact of the spike in COVID-19 cases. Asante spokesperson Lauren Van Sickle tells us the hospital is now rescheduling most elective surgeries.

This time last month, the hospital was averaging 8 to 10 Covid patients a day. Now that number is up to 54. It’s causing a backlog of patients, as more beds are being used to treat Covid patients in poor health.

“It affects our whole health system as well as our community because patients who want to come in for a surgery and have a surgery and have it rescheduled, that impacts their lives and we don’t take that lightly,” said Van Sickle.

Van Sickle says it’s not rescheduling elective surgeries for people with life-threatening conditions. She urges those who have not been vaccinated to get it now.

Jenna King July 29, 2021

Jenna King

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Jenna King is the 6pm and 11pm anchor for NBC5 News. Jenna is a Burbank, CA native. She graduated from the University of Oregon with a degree in Broadcast Journalism and a minor in Sports Business. During her time at Oregon she was part of the student-run television station, Duck TV. She also grew her passion for sports through her internship with the PAC 12 Network. When Jenna is not in the newsroom you can find her rooting for her hometown Dodgers, exploring the outdoors or binging on the latest Netflix release.