ICU

COVID-19 hospitalization numbers have plunged to their lowest levels since the early days of the pandemic, offering a much needed break to health care workers and patients alike following the omicron surge.

The world's battle against Covid-19 has been largely sidelined as economies reopen and governments look to move beyond their "pandemic footing."

Thinking back on that night, in particular, it seems almost absurd that we talked about that first case in such detail, with millions more still to come.

The omicron variant has a faster-spreading subvariant that is becoming dominant in Denmark and increasing in the U.K.

People who get infected with omicron are less likely to go to the hospital, go on a ventilator or die. But with the current huge volume of patients, hospitals are still struggling to treat them all.

"I would sit and count my breaths because I didn't know if I would survive the night," she said.

"I would sit and count my breaths because I didn't know if I would survive the night," she said.

At a White House briefing on Monday, press secretary Jen Psaki said public health recommendations should be adhered to when schools develop COVID-19 guidelines.

Readers discuss an op-ed article by a doctor who has been verbally attacked by anti-vaccine COVID patients and their families.

Stormont ministers agree to drop the use of vaccine passports in hospitality settings from Wednesday.

Though vaccination was superior to prior infection during the Alpha wave, the Delta variant changed that, according to new CDC data.

Leaders of the Henry Ford Health System provided an update Thursday morning on the status of COVID hospitalizations and the virus’ impact on operations.

Here is a map showing the Southeastern Michigan hospital bed occupancy levels.

Spain’s medical community has scored a victory after a court ordered that a regional government compensate doctors with up to 49,000 euros ($56,000) for having to work without personal protection suits during the devastating early months of the pandemic.

At Michigan Medicine and across the state, “health care is truly in a crisis,” warned CEO Dr. Marschall Runge. “This is a heart-breaking situation,” Runge said, urging vaccines as a key tool toward preventing severe COVID cases and offering a lifeline for overwhelmed hospitals. “We are struggling.”Read more: Looking for a place to get a COVID test? The COVID surge has crippled the hospitals’ workforce, officials explained. The COVID burden affects more than just patients who test positive for the virus, officials said.

Here is a map showing the Southeastern Michigan hospital bed occupancy levels.

Tighter pandemic measures have come into force in Romania as authorities hope to quell sharply rising coronavirus cases amid concerns that the next virus wave could overstretch the country’s health care system

Illinois continues to set records for COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations as the highly contagious omicron and delta variants of the coronavirus surge across the state.

A resurgence in COVID-19 cases is testing the endurance of health care workers who care for the sickest patients, most of whom are unvaccinated.

"I think the money, this is keeping a lot of us in the industry, which is also super concerning cause that's not sustainable," one travel nurse said.

The staff is tired, the omicron variant is bearing down and the intensive care unit beds are filling fast at a hospital in the French city of Marseille

The staff is tired, the omicron variant is bearing down and the intensive care unit beds are filling fast at a hospital in the French city of Marseille.

Frustration grows among doctors and nurses at a Southern California ICU where unvaccinated COVID patients are struggling for their lives.

As hospitals across Europe brace themselves for a surge in coronavirus cases because of the new omicron variant, Westerstede Clinical Center is cautiously hopeful it can weather the storm.

Her bed was wheeled from the operating room into her husband's room in the ICU, where he got to meet his newborn son.

As unvaccinated COVID-19 patients fill ICU and acute care beds in Colorado, patients with other ailments are being turned away, and health care workers are reaching a new breaking point.

The state’s health department is looking back at a year of COVID-19 vaccinations in Michigan, as Tuesday, Dec. 14 marks a year since the state began adminis

A total of 173 people attended the party in Malaga on December 1. Everyone had presented a negative test or had a booster shot, per Reuters.

GRAND HAVEN, MI -- Just over half of all intensive care unit (ICU) beds in Ottawa County are occupied by COVID-19 patients in a situation health officials say is bordering on “dire.”As cases continue to surge, confirmed and suspected COVID-19 patients also account for 36% of all in-patient hospital beds, according to Ottawa County health data as of Nov. 20.

The Slovak government has approved a two-week national lockdown amid a record surge of coronavirus infections.

The continent is facing a surge of infection which has led to a lockdown in Austria and curbs in the Netherlands. Germany is also weighing tougher measures.

Germany’s health minister says the rapid rise in coronavirus cases means it’s likely everyone in the country who isn’t vaccinated will have caught COVID-19 by the end of the winter, and some of those will die.

Beds are filling up at U-M hospital as officials report an increase in COVID activity.

Dr. Mona Amin shares how after a traumatic birth, she realized how broken the system is for new parents. She and her partner had no paid leave.

Here are five things you need to know about the coronavirus pandemic this Tuesday evening.

Ukraine has hit another record for daily coronavirus deaths amid a spike in infections fueled by public reluctance to receive vaccines.

Russia’s COVID-19 cases have hit another one-day record as the country struggles to contain a wave of infections that has persisted for more than a month.

Russia has set another record for daily coronavirus deaths as it struggles through a long surge of infections that has prompted restrictions throughout the country.

Daily coronavirus cases and deaths in Russia remain at their highest numbers of the pandemic.

Two weeks ago after Gov. J.B. Pritzker opened the door to ending the indoor mask mandate by the holidays, COVID-19 numbers have stopped dropping, and some healthcare officials are wary as winter approaches.

Coronavirus deaths in Russia hit another daily record several days after a nationwide order for many Russians to stay off work took effect.

Ukraine's president is pleading with citizens to get vaccinated as daily infections have soared to another all-time high.

Wes Ely argues for more humane ICU treatment, with physicians treating the terrors of the patient, not just the disease.

Five things you need to know about the coronavirus pandemic this Sunday morning.

Russia is reporting a record high number of coronavirus infections and COVID-19 deaths as the country approaches a week of nonworking days aimed at stemming the sharp surge in cases.

Ukraine’s coronavirus infections and deaths have reached all-time highs for a second straight day, a growing challenge for the country where the share of vaccinated is one of Europe’s lowest.

In Russia's fifth-largest city, Nizhny Novgorod, seriously ill coronavirus patients at an infectious disease hospital lie in crowded wards with little space between beds.

In areas overwhelmed by COVID cases, hospitals must rely on traveling nurses to operate ICUs. Hospitals pay a premium for that temporary help, while also struggling to keep their staff nurses happy.

The World Health Organization says there has been a 7% rise in new coronavirus cases across Europe last week.

Emily Robison died from covid-19 before she had a chance to hold her daughter, Carmen.

For the first time since Weld County recently ran out of ICU beds due to a spike of COVID-19 cases, one of the county’s sickest patients is sharing his story from his ICU bed.

Two scientists have won the Nobel Prize in medicine for their discoveries into how the human body perceives temperature and touch. The revelations could lead to new ways of treating pain or even heart disease. (Oct. 4)

Researchers at U-M found an explanation for why patients with diabetes are at high risk for developing severe COVID infections.

Researchers at U-M found an explanation for why patients with diabetes are at high risk for developing severe COVID infections.

The vaccination situation in Europe is a story of two regions.

The ICU medical director for Saint Alphonsus told Newsy's sister station that deaths feel "so much heavier because it's preventable."

Alabama's top health official said the state had "literally shrunk." According to preliminary data, it saw 64,714 total deaths and 57,641 births in 2020.

Ray DeMonia died in a Mississippi hospital three days before his birthday — about 200 miles away from home.

"I don’t know how much longer I can keep working this way," the funeral professional told HuffPost.

Bulgaria has access to all four of the vaccines approved by the EU — Pfizer, Moderna, AstraZeneca, and Johnson & Johnson

Good morning, Chicago. Here are some of the top stories you need to know to start your day.

An Ohio judge has ordered a hospital to administer an animal deworming medicine to a man in the ICU with COVID-19, according to the Ohio Capital Journal. The man’s wife had sought to have him treated with ivermectin, often used to treat parasites in large animals such as cows and horses. According to the Ohio Capital Journal, the man, 51, will receive 30mg of ivermectin on a daily basis for three weeks. Neither the FDA nor the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have approved the drug for use in humans to treat COVID-19. Stop it.”The FDA said there is “some initial research underway” but there is no data to support the use of ivermectin in COVID-19 patients.

Although Portland has helped boost Oregon's overall vaccination rate, rural areas lag far behind. That's allowed the pandemic to rage in places like the Rogue Valley, where hospitals are overwhelmed.

According to reports, Caleb Wallace organized rallies to "end COVID tyranny" and pushed back against pandemic-related guidelines.

The risk of rare blood clotting is significantly higher as a result of catching Covid-19 than it is from being vaccinated against the virus, a study has found.

Across the state of Colorado, 84% of ICU beds are in use.

Unvaccinated people are fueling a new wave of COVID-19 cases across the country. In one Oregon hospital battling the virus, staffers say they are surrounded by death.

Unvaccinated people are fueling a new wave of COVID-19 cases across the country. In one Oregon hospital battling the virus, staffers say they are surrounded by death.

Unvaccinated people are fueling a new wave of COVID-19 cases across the country. In one Oregon hospital battling the virus, staffers say they are surrounded by death.

A respiratory therapist's view of how the worst cases of COVID fare. They rarely end well.

Oregon was once the poster child for limiting the spread of the coronavirus, after its Democratic governor imposed some of the nation’s strictest safety measures, including mask mandates, limits on gatherings and an order closing restaurants.

The former president held his maskless rally in Alabama, which has run out of ICU beds as the state grapples with soaring cases of COVID-19.

“Even after expanding ICU care onto other floors, there weren’t any beds available for this patient.”

Hospitals in Alabam have run out of intensive care unit beds as coronavirus cases spike across the state.

There are 29 more patients than there are ICU open beds as of Wednesday. The recent run, reminiscent of early in the pandemic, is occurring largely in states with the lowest vaccination rates.

As coronavirus infections rise among young Americans, so too have deaths in a population once thought to be largely shielded from the worst of the pandemic.

Healthcare workers on the frontlines of the COVID pandemic are bracing for another potential surge in cases.

State lawmakers are taking actions to limit the emergency powers of governors — not just during the coronavirus pandemic, but for any future emergencies.

Here's what's coming up on Local 4 News at 5.

Gretchen Whitmer announced Wednesday a new COVID-19 vaccination goal of 100,000 doses per day, up from the previous goal of 50,000 doses per day. Michigan has reported more than 4.2 million doses of the COVID-19 vaccine administered, as of Tuesday, with 32% of residents having received at least one dose. The state has been reaching its 50,000 daily doses goal for about a month now. More: Pfizer says its COVID-19 vaccine protects younger teensAdWe’re gathering information on COVID-19 vaccination efforts across Metro Detroit as more and more people become eligible across the state. Michigan has reported more than 4.1 million doses of the COVID-19 vaccine administered, as of Monday, with 32% of residents having received at least one dose.

I have seen a very clear increase in COVID patients at the ER in Detroit, and many of them need to be hospitalized. Tatem is a critical care specialist in the ICU at Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit. They’re about 5 years or so younger than we’ve seen in the past,” said Tatem. “The fact that they’re critical ill and in an ICU means that they’re going to have pretty much a protracted course. New: Michigan governor has new COVID vaccination goal of 100,000 doses per dayCoronavirus resources:

FILE- In this March 19, 2021, file photo, a nurse tends to a patient affected by COVID-19 virus in the ICU unit at the Ambroise Pare clinic in Neuilly-sur-Seine, near Paris. The sobering warnings were delivered Sunday in newspaper opinions signed by dozens of Paris-region doctors. Since January, Macron’s government has instead imposed a nationwide overnight curfew and followed that with a grab-bag of other restrictions. But with infections soaring and hospitals increasingly running short of intensive-care beds, doctors have been stepping up the pressure for a full French lockdown. AdThe doctors predicted that softer new restrictions imposed this month on Paris and some other regions won't quickly bring the resurgent epidemic under control.

The body of a COVID-19 victim lies in a body bag at the ICU of the Sao Jose municipal hospital in Duque de Caxias, Brazil, Wednesday, March 24, 2021. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)SAO PAULO – Brazil topped 300,000 confirmed COVID-19 deaths on Wednesday, becoming the second country to do so amid a spike in infections that has seen the South American country report record death tolls in recent days. The United States reached the grim milestone on Dec. 14, but has a larger population than Brazil. On Wednesday, Brazil's health ministry reported 2,009 daily COVID-19 deaths, bringing its pandemic total to 300,685. On Tuesday, the country saw a single-day record of 3,251 deaths.

A police officer patrols in the Chatelet area amidst the new coronavirus pandemic, in Paris, Saturday, March 13, 2021. Some of the nation’s governors routinely block access to public records, keeping the public in the dark about key decisions involving the coronavirus pandemic. Polling shows divides by race and politics, with Black Americans and supporters of former President Donald Trump expressing more skepticism about the vaccines. Richard Hall of the Berkshire COVID-19 Vaccine Collaborative spoke to the The Berkshire Eagle. Ad___WASHINGTON - Commercial air travel appears to be on the upswing despite the coronavirus pandemic.

Relatives attend a burial service of a person who died from complications related to COVID-19 at the Vila Formosa cemetery in Sao Paulo, Brazil, Thursday, March 11, 2021. Ad“We have reached the limit across Brazil; rare are the exceptions,” Dias, who leads the governors’ forum, said. “In the whole country, aggressive use of the public health measures, social measures, will be very, very crucial,” he said. At the Vila Formosa cemetery in Sao Paulo, burials are being done one after another, with mourners and cars lined up awaiting their turn. Associated Press videojournalist Tatiana Pollastri contributed from Sao Paulo.

In the French Indian Ocean territory of Mayotte, virus cases are suddenly spiking to their highest levels since the pandemic began, and demand for ICU beds is more than double supply. (AP Photo/ Sony Ibrahim Chamsidine)MAMOUDZOU – Mayotte’s main tourist office stands nearly empty, a lonely tropical outpost overlooking a people-less port. The Mayotte islands are the poorest corner of the European Union, tucked between Madagascar and the mainland coast of Mozambique in southern Africa - and were the last spot in France to receive any coronavirus vaccines. Local authorities feel forgotten and say their difficulties in fighting the virus reflect long-standing inequalities between France’s majority-white mainland and its far-flung multiracial former colonies. The French army is sending in medical workers and a few ICU beds, and President Emmanuel Macron’s government pledged Wednesday to step up vaccine deliveries.

This is daily life in La Timone's ICU ward in Marseille, as France grapples with whether to impose a third lockdown and struggles to ramp up the pace of vaccinations. Ad“It’s been tense since the beginning of the second wave, around October or November,” Dr. Julien Carvelli, head of the ICU ward, told The Associated Press. “We’re afraid that, in the coming weeks, we won’t be able to take in and treat all ICU patients,” including those with illnesses other than COVID. But President Emmanuel Macron’s government says it won’t shut down the country again unless its hospitals are again at risk of overflowing with virus patients. His ward was lucky to have a free bed when the hospital’s pediatric department asked for a place for the 16-year-old virus patient.

Last week, state health officials told The Associated Press they were keeping all the data secret because it is complicated and might mislead the public. Dr. George Rutherford, an epidemiologist and infectious-diseases control expert at University of California, San Francisco, was among the critics. Gavin Newsom announced a new stay-at-home order that was based on ICU capacity in each of five regions. At a news conference with Newsom, California Health and Human Services Secretary Dr. Mark Ghaly promised to reveal some of the information behind the projections. But it’s currently stuck at 9.9% — virtually the same level it was two weeks ago when state officials abruptly lifted the stay-at-home order there.

More than a quarter of the world’s 94.4 million confirmed COVID cases are from the United States as of Jan. 17, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. Each week, we’ll provide an update on each state’s total number of COVID cases and how they compare to other states. Local: Coronavirus in Michigan: Here’s what to know Jan. 17, 2021Below is the total coronavirus case count for each state in the U.S. on Jan. 17, 2021. As of Jan. 17, the total number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in the United States is 23,923,062 -- the highest in the world. More: Global COVID: Tracking countries with the most virus cases, deaths on Jan. 17, 2021COVID-19 cases and deaths have been broken down by county in each individual state by Johns Hopkins University and can be viewed here.

California health authorities reported Thursday a record two-day total of 1,042 coronavirus deaths as many hospitals strain under unprecedented caseloads. California health authorities reported Thursday 583 new deaths and a record two-day total of 1,042. Carmela Coyle, the association’s president and chief executive, said the group has been negotiating with state officials but they aren’t acting fast enough. “It’s a slap in the face to safe patient care to actually call charting and documentation ‘red tape,’” she said. State health officials did not respond to questions on how they expect the heath orders to be applied or how many patients or hospitals might be affected.

Increasingly desperate California hospitals are being "crushed" by soaring coronavirus infections, with one Los Angeles emergency doctor predicting that rationing of care is imminent. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)LOS ANGELES – Medical staffing is stretched increasingly thin as California hospitals scramble to find beds for patients amid an explosion of coronavirus cases that threatens to overwhelm the state's emergency care system. In hard-hit Los Angeles County, Nerissa Black, a nurse at Henry Mayo Newhall Hospital, estimated she's been averaging less than 10 minutes of care per patient every hour. California was experiencing “some of the darkest days of our COVID-19 surge,” Gov. Supermarkets have been hit hard by the virus surge, further straining an essential service that remains open during the latest stay-at-home order.

As one of the man's carers, Brissaud had been more physically intimate with him than many people are with their friends. This is what it is to encounter death, over and over, in the COVID-poisoned days of the 2020 pandemic. It was also where the ICU patient in room No. The man's age and the fact that his death wasn't unexpected made it easier for his carers, Busch determined. She says the virus death of a young lung-transplant recipient made one ICU paramedic “very angry.” Another came to her “in tears, saying, ‘They are all dying.

Some counties have opted to impose them even before the mandate kicks in, including five San Francisco Bay Area counties where the measures also take effect starting Sunday. San Francisco resident Michael Duranceau rushed to a market to load up on supplies. “I can’t emphasize this enough – everyone must take personal steps to protect themselves and protect others.”The other three regions — Greater Sacramento, Northern California and San Francisco Bay Area — were all around 21% capacity. The changes begin to take effect Sunday night in San Francisco, Santa Clara, Marin, Alameda and Contra Costa counties, as well as the city of Berkeley. ___Associated Press writers Olga R. Rodriguez and Juliet Williams in San Francisco, Robert Jablon and Brian Melley in Los Angeles and Adam Beam in Sacramento contributed.

Some counties have opted to impose them even before the mandate kicks in, including five San Francisco Bay Area counties where the measures also take effect starting Sunday. San Francisco resident Michael Duranceau rushed to a market to load up on supplies. The 11-county Southern California region, which includes the cities of Los Angeles and San Diego, had only 12.5% of its ICU beds available, the California Department of Public Health reported Saturday. The figure was 8.6% for the San Joaquin Valley region, composed of a dozen counties in the agricultural Central Valley and rural areas of the Sierra Nevada. ___Associated Press writers Olga R. Rodriguez and Juliet Williams in San Francisco, Robert Jablon and Brian Melley in Los Angeles and Adam Beam in Sacramento contributed.

The health officers in six San Francisco Bay Area regions have issued a new stay-at-home order as the number of virus cases surge and hospitals fill. (AP Photo/Eric Risberg)SAN FRANCISCO – The health officers in five San Francisco Bay Area counties issued a new stay-at-home order Friday requiring some businesses to close and banning all gatherings, as the number of virus cases surge and hospitals fill. The Bay Area counties are so closely connected that it was much easier to implement a regional order, officials said. The Golden Gate Restaurant Association in San Francisco said most restaurants “cannot make it financially on takeout alone." ___Associated Press writer Jocelyn Gecker in San Francisco and Brian Melley in Los Angeles contributed.

ANN ARBOR – Michigan Medicine has partnered with about 100 of the country’s top health care systems urging Americans to mask up as COVID-19 cases reach record-breaking highs. Over the past two weeks, more than 900 medical workers at Mayo Clinic tested positive for COVID-19. The message reads:“As the top nationally-ranked hospitals, we know it’s tough that we all need to do our part and keep wearing masks. However now is exactly the wrong time to let up,” Marschall S. Runge, CEO of Michigan Medicine and dean of the U-M Medical School said in a statement. “But for now, we have to use the tools that we know work: wearing masks, staying socially distant and washing hands.

The facade of the hospital is blackened by smoke from the ICU unit following a fire in Piatra Neamt, northern Romania, Saturday, Nov. 14, 2020. (ZIarPiatraNeamt.ro via AP)BUCHAREST – A fire at a hospital treating COVID-19 patients in northeastern Romania killed 10 people Saturday and injured 10 others, seven of them critically, officials said. The blaze spread through the intensive care ward designated for COVID-19 patients at the public hospital in the city of Piatra Neamt, local Emergency Situations Inspectorate spokesperson Irina Popa said. were hospital patients, . News outlets reported that Piatra Neamt Regional Emergency Hospital has long been poorly managed, with eight government-appointed managers overseeing the facility in the last year.

Healthcare workers attending to COVID-19 patients in an intensive care unit (ICU) at Na Bulovce hospital in Prague, Czech Republic, Thursday, Oct. 1, 2020. A record surge of new coronavirus infections in the Czech Republic in September has been followed by a record surge of those hospitalized with COVID-19. The Czech Republic currently has more people testing positive daily than any other country in Central and Eastern Europe, even neighboring Germany whose population is eight times bigger. The new confirmed day-to-day increase reached a new record high of 5,335 on Wednesday, almost 900 more than Tuesday's previous record. Prime Minister Igor Matovic called the development “a serious moment for Slovakia.” Matovic said he will consider further tightening restrictions for travelers from the Czech Republic.

A medical crew works at a patient affected with COVID-19 in a Marseille hospital, southern France, Thursday, Sept.10, 2020. (AP Photo/Daniel Cole)MARSEILLE – All five intensive care beds dedicated to COVID patients are in use at the Laveran Military Training Hospital in Marseille, and its doctors are bracing for more. The 70 ICU beds dedicated to virus patients in France’s second-biggest city and the surrounding Bouches-du-Rhone region were all occupied by Tuesday. The number of ICU virus patients in the region has doubled in the past 10 days and now surpasses 100. Among the new virus patients, Pierre-Yves said, “Some are older but not all.