The Alessandria hospital is in crisis: already 250 Covid hospitalizations and 40% are serious

Alessandria – The hospital of Alessandria, the Santi Antonio e Biagio is under stress: 250 Covid patients hospitalized, of these hundred are in intensive or sub-intensive care. The situation is at the limit and yesterday during the meeting – wanted by the Prefect Olita – with the hospital, the ASL, the Province, the Municipality and the Order of doctors, an attempt was made to organize a collaboration with other hospitals in the other centers in the area. “The regional crisis unit – said the mayor of Alessandria, Cuttica – must allow faster procedures for the transfer of patients from the hospital to the local health authorities”.

The problem is also that, now, at Santi Antonio e Biagio there is a risk of not having places for patients with other pathologies. Daniela Kozel’s statement is all too clear: “The situation is worrying because every day on average twenty Covid patients come to the emergency room”. Like a tragic domino, what happens to the Turin hospitals is also happening in Alessandria. “We have been told – said the president of the Province on Friday 13 November, Gianfranco Baldi – the hospitalization situation, the idea now is to find collaboration with the other hospitals in the area centers. And to strengthen local medicine ».

This last sentence can now be heard repeated in every meeting on the health emergency, such as yesterday’s one organized by the Prefect Iginius Olita with all health and political bodies, but from how the situation is evolving the solution seems far away. On the “territory”, that is, in the homes of those Covid patients who do not have to resort to hospitalization, the Usca arrive on which, the mayor of Alessandria Gianfraco Cuttica di Revigliasco writes: “Particular attention must be paid to the hospital discharge times of less serious or mild patients, in continuity of care in alternative structures or in the family, through coordination with the activity of the Usca”.

And everyone is asking for a upgrading of special units continuity of care and general practitioners, everything depends on the ASL. Not many results for now, so much so that Antonello Santoro, president of the Order of doctors declares: «We are in a preparatory phase, to aim at improving home care. There is a regional and national draft agreement that provides for more tools to follow Covid patients at home, so as to ease the pressure on hospitals and then ensure medical assistance after the hospital. In short, some progress has been made ».

And we hope so, because just yesterday the virologist Fabrizio Pregliasco warned of the “third wave of February”. Still Cuttica: “To avoid other risks, the Regional Crisis Unit must allow, with more streamlined and faster procedures, transfers of patients between Asl and Aso. For this reason, it is essential to sensitize the regional administration ”.

This means Alexandrian patients in Acqui and Ovada or Casale hospitals, they are patients with other pathologies and not Covid. “But you can also think of asking private individuals for help – says Baldi instead -. For example at the Alexandria City Clinic ». Meanwhile, the Salus clinic also has all the seats filled. The municipal administration wants to play a role of “facilitator” between different entities, monitoring “the problems of an economic nature that are emerging in some RSAs in the area”. The issue of residences for the elderly is a “bubble” that can explode at the end of the year, with the closure of structures and layoffs and consequent elderly people transferred or without assistance.

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