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Growing number of COVID-19 cases at hospitals raising questions about risk for patients without the virus

Doctor Karla Robinson says anytime you leave your house there’s a risk of catching the virus. That includes hospitals, where the sickest patients are going.

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — The growing number of coronavirus cases at Charlotte-area hospitals is raising safety questions for other patients.

In the coming days, North Carolina is expected to peak on resources needed to treat patients. Now, WCNC Charlotte is looking into what that means for patients going to the doctor or hospital for health issues other than the coronavirus.

Doctor Karla Robinson says anytime you leave your house there’s a risk of catching the virus. That includes hospitals, where the sickest patients are going.

“COVID-19 is everywhere, certainly we are seeing the sickest of the sick at the hospitals,” says Dr. Robinson, who practices family medicine.

North Carolina is projected to peak on the resources needed on April 13, according to the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation.

“There are people coming to the hospital because they are having severe symptoms,” said Dr. Robinson.

Dr. Robinson says medical providers are doing what they can to protect patients, but there are no guarantees.

“The likelihood of being exposed is there, it's certainly possible, but we don't want anyone to not seek the medical attention that they need out of fear for that,” Dr. Robinson said.

Dr. Robinson says that means you should certainly not avoid medical help if you have a serious illness or injury.

“Any type of acute injury that you think may need stitches, any type of acute injury that might require an X-ray,” said Dr. Robinson.

However, Dr. Robinson says you may want to rethink the risk of going to the doctor for chronic symptoms with no change in frequency or severity.

“Chances are it's not probably something that's acute in nature if it's been going on for some time, so that may be something that doesn't need to be assessed immediately,” said Dr. Robinson.

It’s important to remember you can also do virtual visits with your doctor for some symptoms. Dr. Robinson says if you’re unsure about whether to get checked out, you should call your primary care doctor.

WCNC Charlotte reached out to the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services to see if there are any known cases of people contracting the virus from a hospital.  State officials say because of community spread, it's challenging to determine where someone catches the virus, but no outbreaks have been reported at hospitals in the state.

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