'We can't afford another COVID surge' - NGHS begs people to get vaccine, mask up

Fatigued physically and mentally, Northeast Georgia Health System staff made a plea for people to get vaccinated and follow Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines amid a spike in COVID-19 cases

“We are really, really trying hard,” said Dr. Supriya Mannepalli, Northeast Georgia Medical Center’s medical director of infectious disease medicine. “If there is one plea to the community, that is ‘go get vaccinated and please wear masks as recommended by the CDC and follow the other measures.’ Because if these numbers continue to increase — we’re close to 100 (COVID patients) today — our staff, they’re all tired. We cannot afford another surge to the peak where we went in the winter.”

The number of COVID-19 patients being treated has nearly tripled across Northeast Georgia Health System in the past week. Of those cases, 90% were unvaccinated.

NGHS reported 91 COVID-positive patients Friday, July 30, across its facilities, up from 32 a week previous. The average age of those patients was 60.

Read more: https://www.gainesvilletimes.com/news/health-care/we-cant-afford-another-covid-surge-nghs-begs-people-to-get-vaccine-mask-up/