Staffing and Critical Care at RMH

Written by Holly Wolff,

CEO Roundup Memorial Healthcare

Musselshell County is experiencing a significant surge of COVID cases. Over the last few weeks the number of active COVID-19 cases here has more than quadrupled, from about 20 on any given day to more than 80 today. Our county death total has also risen to 18 residents lost to COVID-related illness.

Roundup Memorial Healthcare (RMH) has seen a nearly overwhelming increase of patients, and ER and clinic nurse visits have tripled. This is impacting wait times and the amount of time it may take to receive return phone calls from our teams. We know this is frustrating, however, we are doing our best to see and respond to everyone as quickly as possible. We are doing everything we can to keep up with this increasing demand while facing ongoing and sustained staffing shortages. The staffing shortages are in part due to an overall workforce shortage in health care, as well as about 10% of our staff being out at any given time due to Covid protocols.

We have asked for additional resources such as National Guard support but because our hospital provides intermediate swing care, similar to long term care in a portion of our facility, so we do not qualify at this time. We are also working to hire temporary staff, but have been limited in finding as many as we need. We are bringing in paramedics to supplement and support our nursing staff and are grateful for these resources.

While the hope is to not have to implement Crisis Standard of Care measures – which provide guidance on how to allocate limited medical supplies, space and staff in the event of scarcity of resources due to the COVID-19 pandemic – it is critically important that health care organizations like RMH are ready to do so if the need arises.

We are exploring every avenue possible to ensure our we continue to meet the needs of our community. To help with our capacity constraints, we have been working to transfer patients to larger hospital systems like our partner, Billings Clinic. They have been helping where they can but, like hospitals across the region, they are also experiencing record patient numbers.

We ask for your patience and understanding during this unprecedented pandemic strain. We understand things are uncertain, and we are doing our very best to care for each and every person who needs us in a timely manner. Our ER remains open and available 24 hours every day. If you need emergency care, please don't put it off because you are concerned we can't serve you. We are here for you.

Please join me in thanking the dedicated staff at Roundup Memorial Healthcare for their commitment to serve during this extraordinarily busy time.