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Burke County health care leaders ask patients for patience

In open letters to the community, UNC Health Blue Ridge's CEO and Burke County EMS' director explained the challenges they're confronting with the pandemic.

MORGANTON, N.C. — UNC Health Blue Ridge's CEO and the Burke County EMS director penned open letters to the community, asking for patience as they grapple with longer wait times in the emergency department.

CEO Kathy Bailey said she felt the need to pen a letter after seeing exhausted looks on her hospital staff's faces.

"They're tired. The patient numbers keep coming, but they're committed and dedicated to doing the profession they've chosen, which is taking care of patients," Bailey said. "We're stretched. A lot of people have left health care, and I felt like this was just a way to help the community understand the sacrifices that their health care workers are also making."

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Bailey said they’ve relied a lot on travel nurses to fill staffing gaps, and she said the hospital does everything it can not to go into "diversion," which forces Burke County ambulances to take patients to hospitals in other counties.

However, she said it can lead to longer wait times as they try to see every patient brought into the hospital.

"It does, I think, help the local EMS," Bailey said. "But, that creates a burden for our staff."

Burke County EMS director Jason Black agreed with Bailey's assessment.

"It [has] probably saved us the most heartache of anything," Black said. "It is essential."

Still, Black said his crews have been operating at a relentless pace, and over the last several weeks, emergency department wait times have gotten longer, and patients have lashed out at EMS crews.

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"Our crews have been beat down and beat down," Black said. "We're lucky. We haven't had a huge amount of turnover."

It's why Black penned his own letter to help Bailey explain the challenges that Burke County's health care system has confronted.

"There may be somebody in the back having a stroke or the worst event in their life, and you may have to wait an hour or two or more," Black said. "Just be patient with us."

Contact Brandon Golder at bgoldner@wcnc.com and follow him on FacebookTwitter and Instagram.  

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