BATESVILLE, IN — The negative impact COVID-19 has been having on the area lately has prompted Margaret Mary Health to give a community update on patient volumes and positive cases the hospital is seeing.
The Ripley County COVID positivity rate is 12.39% and remains in “ORANGE” status, along with Decatur and Dearborn counties. The Franklin County COVID positivity rate is 18.06% and has been changed to “RED” status.
The MMH Emergency Department saw a record number of patients in August with nearly 2,000 patient visits during the month and a single-day all-time record volume of 88 patients. As a result of the significantly higher patient volumes, current wait times are longer than normal. The hospital currently has 18 patients on the Med/Surg floor, with two of those patients in the Special Care Unit. Three of the patients are COVID positive. See Charts (01 & 03) for MMH inpatient volumes and percent of COVID inpatients vaccinated vs. unvaccinated.
In August, Margaret Mary Health had 176 patients who tested positive for COVID, with a current positivity rate of 18.1%. Margaret Mary Health can provide testing for symptomatic patients at the Main Campus Lab with an order from a primary care provider. Current turnaround times are typically within 48 hours. See Chart (02) for more details on testing results.
Due to limited supply, they do not currently have rapid testing available for asymptomatic or mildly symptomatic patients. These tests are reserved for critically ill patients, where hospital admission is likely.
