Boston hospital becomes the first ‘dedicated care center’ in the U.S. to only treat coronavirus patients
- Carney Hospital will transform into care center dedicated to virus victims
- Will include negative pressure wards and enhanced patient isolation protocols
- It will also start to gather key equipment incl. ventilators and PPE
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A hospital in Boston has become the first care center in the US dedicated to treating only coronavirus patients.
Carney Hospital in the city’s Dorchester neighborhood is working to set up specialist wards to treat those suffering from COVID-19.
Steward Health Care, which operates 35 hospitals in nine states, announced that the transformation of their Northeast division would begin immediately.
Carney Hospital (pictured) in the city’s Dorchester neighborhood is working to set up specialist wards to treat those suffering from COVID-19
Dr. Joseph Einstein said they wanted to be prepared as more people are expected to contract the disease.
‘We are waiting for more people to develop it, so we wanted to be ready for than that occurred,’ he said.
The 159-bed hospital on Dorchester Avenue will be transformed to include negative pressure patient wards and enhanced patient isolation protocols.
It will also gather key equipment necessary to treat coronavirus patients including ventilators and personal protective equipment.
Steward Health Care said it is planning to implement similar ‘designated care center’ models in other areas if and when they are required.
Steward has also launched three drive-through testing centers in Utah.
Other remote testing sites will be activated this week in Massachusetts and Florida.
The state of Massachusetts is one of the hardest hit with the virus outbreak, and has reported 256 cases of COVID-19 as of Wednesday.
Governor Charlie Baker said the state would soon see a significant increase in its testing capabilities as it ramps up efforts to slow the spread of the virus.
