Impact Felt from 252 COVID Deaths
August 26, 2021Editor’s note: The number of deaths had increased to 257 as of 7 a.m. today, August 26, 2021.
Last Friday, Alabama recorded its 12,000th death related to COVID-19. Meanwhile, over the weekend, East Alabama Health also marked a tragic milestone as the health system passed 250 deaths from COVID, and stood at 252 deaths as of Monday at 6 p.m.
“We’re heartbroken to have lost this many lives to one illness in only 17 months,” expressed Laura Grill, East Alabama Health president and CEO. “These are not just numbers; these are people who our physicians and staff fought bravely to save. The mounting losses really take a toll on our team even when we know we have done everything we could to care for them and protect them.”
Ranging in age from 31 to 101, the patients lost to COVID at East Alabama came from a myriad of backgrounds and counties, with residents of Lee and Chambers counties accounting for 173 of the 252 deaths.
“That truly speaks to the fact that we lost neighbors and friends to this pandemic,” stated Grill, referring to the two counties where East Alabama Health’s hospitals are located.
Just like the peaks and valleys of hospitalizations, the highest death tolls over the course of the pandemic fell in the months illustrated by the all-time graph. Going in chronological order, April 2020 saw the first peak with 54 hospitalizations and 20 deaths, followed by the post-July 4, 2020, peak of 62 hospitalizations and 37 deaths (17 in July and 20 in August).
January 2021 provided the highest peak to date as its 92 hospitalizations and 43 deaths came on the heels of the holiday season. It was flanked on either side by 20 deaths in December 2020 and 30 deaths in February 2021.
On the strength of the vaccine rollout in early 2021, monthly deaths fell as low as three in May. However, the Delta variant sparked this fourth peak which brought about 8 deaths in July and 13 so far in August.
Physician Perspective
While multiple physicians have poured their minds, bodies and souls into fighting COVID-19 at East Alabama Health, the three most closely tied in to the battle have been Ricardo Maldonado, M.D. (infectious diseases specialist), Michael Roberts, M.D. (hospitalist and ICU medical director) and Meshia Wallace, M.D. (pulmonologist and critical care physician).
“I can basically remember everyone we have lost, especially those who fought for a long time,” shared Dr. Maldonado. “However, the situation is different now. Knowing that most of the deaths in the past few months could have been prevented is demoralizing. At times it feels like we are worse off than any previous peak.”
Reflecting on the difference between 2020 and 2021, Dr. Maldonado said, “I wish those patients we lost earlier in the Pandemic had the chance to be vaccinated, but that was not an option for them. We are trying the best we can to educate our community about prevention, while we are also working long hours to save one more life inside the hospital.
“The best way to honor those we lost is to get—and promote—the vaccine that our patients in 2020 never had a chance to get,” stressed Dr. Maldonado. Regarding the occasional decreases in the number of ventilators used, he says “that is because more patients have died. This is not getting better.”
For Dr. Roberts, he states that “A patient death from COVID-19 is not a point in time. To us, these patients are more than a number on a chart. Our staff pours their heart and soul into the care of these patients,” he said. “Many of the patients represented here were hospitalized for weeks or months; easily long enough for us to build a close bond with the patients and their families. We grieve with the families of each of these patients.”
While the COVID death toll is necessary to convey the message of the deadly virus and its impact on our community, Dr. Roberts uses it for motivation. “It is only about the number in that we are that much more determined to do anything in our power to bring an end to this horrible pandemic.”
Dr. Wallace reflects on the complexity of COVID-19. “The first two peaks of COVID-19 were very frustrating, to say the least. Every aspect of our lives changed. We were in the dark as we knew very little about COVID-19 at that time, and the various ways it impacted the human body. The ICU was a sad and frustrating place to be over that time period,” she said.
With the Delta variant now widespread, COVID-19 is perhaps more formidable than before, but Dr. Wallace and other medical leaders—and the public—have more knowledge and resources than previously. “We have a lot more information now based on experience and studies that have been conducted throughout the pandemic,” Dr. Wallace said.
“In particular, we know the vaccine can help significantly reduce serious illness secondary to COVID if a person experiences a breakthrough case following vaccination,” she said. “That’s why we’re so strongly encouraging vaccination to everyone. With the Delta variant, we have seen younger, sicker patients who are unvaccinated occupying ICU beds here and around the state. That’s especially heartbreaking and frustrating because we know this could have been prevented.”
An Infusion of Hope = A Reduction in Hospitalizations
Last November, EAMC provided monoclonal antibody infusions to four COVID-positive patients at risk of hospitalization. Since then, more than 1,800 infusions have been performed across the organization with the majority occurring in a mobile unit set up behind EAMC. Others have taken place in the Emergency Departments at EAMC and EAMC-Lanier, as well as at the Auburn University Medical Clinic.
Seeing the success of these infusions to prevent many hospitalizations, hospital officials continued to expand the free service, to the point where as many as 48 could be completed in a single day. The Delta variant caused East Alabama leaders to think outside the mobile infusion box. In doing so, it was decided to temporarily convert EAMC’s empty ICU Waiting Room into a new space for the Covid Infusion Center, where as many as 64 daily infusions could occur.
Like the pandemic itself, the Covid Infusion Center has seen peaks and valleys. After an extremely busy winter, it leveled off to about 30 infusions a month from March through June of this year. That was the calm before the Delta storm. In July, infusions leaped to 117, with 89 of them between July 22-30. In August, that pace quickened to more than 300 infusions per week and caused the infusion center to ramp up its services to 12 hours a day, 7 days a week.
“Our ability to pivot quickly and move with the surge has saved lives,” stated Chuck Beams, executive director of Pharmacy Services at East Alabama Health. “This simple infusion is like an instant defense to the COVID virus, like a Seal Team 6 in an IV bag. These monoclonal antibodies rush like soldiers into the body, searching for the spike proteins on the surface of the coronavirus,” he explained. “Once the antibodies have attached, the virus is blocked from entering the body's cells, and when this happens, the virus can't replicate.”
Beams said the monoclonal antibody infusions have been a game-changer. “It's an amazing therapy, and we are blessed to offer it to our community,” Beams said. “This is not the case in all areas. We are constantly getting calls from patients all over the state and from other states wanting the treatment. We cannot service those requests at this time as we are saving the stock we have for our patients here in east central Alabama.”
Survival Rate vs. Death Rate
Much has been made about the survival rate of COVID-19, which is commonly announced as 98 to 99 percent. What that does not take into consideration is an individual’s chances of survival, which varies with age and overall health.
Certainly an 18-year-old senior with no underlying health conditions stands a much better chance at survival than does a 75-year-old senior with even just one comorbidity. However, no one lives in a vacuum. As a result, that same 18-year-old high school senior, if infected but with no symptoms, can transmit the virus to that 75-year-old senior living resident, perhaps a unvaccinated grandparent, and create a COVID tailspin for the elder senior. Vaccination by both greatly reduces the chances of this scenario, and greatly increases the survival rate of both seniors.
Survivorship odds change significantly when illness advances far enough to require hospitalization. To date, East Alabama Health has discharged 1,952 patients who suffered from COVID-19. As mentioned at the beginning, 252 of them have died, meaning the remaining 1,700 were successfully discharged home to continue recovery there.
Using those specific figures, the survival rate for a person requiring hospitalization drops to 87.1 percent. However, of the 252 deaths, 211 occurred between March 2020 – February 2021, during which time the vast majority of U.S residents were not vaccinated. From March 2021 – August 23, 2021, “only” 41 deaths from COVID occurred at East Alabama Health, with 21 of them in July and August in the peak sparked by the Delta variant.
How many deaths this 4th peak—this Delta peak—causes is yet to be determined. However, the message from Dr. Wallace earlier this week rang loud and clear. “What we’re seeing here is what other hospitals are seeing as well,” stated Dr. Wallace. “And that is that people who are vaccinated and experience a breakthrough case are very unlikely to be admitted to the ICU or to need to be placed on a ventilator.” And thankfully, the fewer number of patients on a ventilator, the few deaths that would be expected.
COVID Death Demographics
SEX
Males – 137 (average age – 75.16)
Females – 115 (average age – 69.73)
RACE
White/Caucasian – 134 (average age – 67.36)
Black/African-American – 95 (average age – 79.10)
All Others – 23
COUNTY
Lee – 98
Chambers – 75
Tallapoosa – 17
Macon – 16
Elmore – 11
All Others – 35 (6 from out-of-state)
AGE
0-24 = 0 deaths
25-39 = 7 deaths (avg. age – 34.66)
40-59 = 36 deaths (avg. age – 53.23)
60-79 = 131 deaths (avg. age – 73.16)
80+ = 78 deaths (avg. age – 84.25)
MONTHLY TOTALS
Mar. 2020 – 7
Apr. 2020 – 27
May 2020 – 7
June 2020 – 4
July 2020 – 17
Aug. 2020 – 20
Sept. 2020 – 8
Oct. 2020 – 17
Nov. 2020 – 11
Dec. 2020 – 20
Jan. 2021 – 43
Feb. 2021 – 30
Mar. 2021 – 7
Apr. 2021 – 4
May 2021 – 3
June 2021 – 6
July 2021 – 8
Aug. 2021 – 13 (as of August 23)
TOTAL – 252 (257 as of August 26)
COD10 AssetID
243868
External ID
703
Integration Source
COD10
Integration Source URL
https://www.eastalabamahealth.org/news-and-media/impact-felt-from-252-covid-deaths
