An Alabama man recently died after a cardiac event. He was turned away from 43 hospitals because of cardiac ICU bed shortages.
So what happens if you get sick, COVID-related or not, and find yourself in need of an ICU bed that isn't available? We took this question to Tampa Bay hospitals.
Hospitals communicate with each other internally when issues like bed shortages arise. In the case of the Alabama man, his local hospital reached out to 43 other facilities across multiple states on the patient's behalf.
In the Tampa Bay area, it's no different. If a patient's needs exceed the hospital's ability of care, that hospital would then reach out to a transfer center, or directly to other hospitals.
