N.J. hospitals filled with COVID, flu cases. When will the surge ease? – NJ.com

Sniffling. Coughing. Throat clearing. It seemed to be the soundtrack of this past holiday season.

Maybe it was the festive gatherings. Or the new coronavirus variant. Or the cold weather forcing people indoors.

But the significant spike in cases of COVID-19, flu and RSV that ruined many a familys holiday season in New Jersey continues, even if it finally might be easing in some regions.

Last week, RWJBarnabas Health which operates 12 acute care hospitals in the state saw a significant jump in respiratory illnesses. But a spokeswoman said the number of new patients this week was starting to level off.

Still, many people in the state are falling ill.

An official for Inspira Health, which runs three hospitals in South Jersey, said in a statement that the community of southern New Jersey is seeing a rise in respiratory illness, including COVID, flu, and RSV.

We encourage everyone to take steps to prevent the spread of viral infections wash your hands often, maintain a comfortable distance when interacting with others, wear a mask as appropriate, and stay home when you are not feeling well, said Dr. Tony S. Reed, senior vice president and chief quality, safety and experience officer for the health network, in the statement.

Tens of thousands of people in New Jersey have been sickened by COVID-19 or influenza in recent weeks, and no doubt many more from RSV (respiratory syncytial virus), based just on reported cases. An exponentially higher number of residents probably fell ill in actuality.

Some hospitals in the state have been diverting patients this week due to volume, forced to send the sick to other facilities because they were jammed. For instance, Bayonne Medical Center, Cooper University Hospital in Camden, Inspira Medical Center in Mullica Hill, Toms River Hospital Community Medical Center, Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital Hamilton and Penn Medicine Princeton Medical Center in Plainsboro were all on divert Monday afternoon, according to an online tracker. Cape Regional Health System in Middle Township was also on divert earlier in the day.

In fact, New Jersey saw more than 30,000 COVID-19 cases just over the past month. (As of Tuesday, 1,417 people were hospitalized with COVID-19, with 49 on ventilators. And over roughly the past month, more than 100 people have died from the coronavirus, according to the states dashboard.)

Meanwhile, New Jersey recently had the 10th-highest rate of emergency department visits in the nation for influenza-like illness, according to Beckers Hospital Review. As of Dec. 30, more than 27,000 flu cases were reported in the state.

There have been no flu-related pediatric deaths so far this season in New Jersey, but activity is high in every region of the state. Nationwide, there have been at least 10 million flu cases (although it could be as many as 19 million), according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

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Spencer Kent may be reached at skent@njadvancemedia.com.

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N.J. hospitals filled with COVID, flu cases. When will the surge ease? - NJ.com