Current COVID hospitalizations increase for the first time in weeks in Sedgwick County

The number of coronavirus disease patients in Wichita hospitals increased on Tuesday for the first time in weeks.

The Sedgwick County Health Department reported 59 patients with COVID-19 were hospitalized in the county on Tuesday, which was up by nine from Aug. 31.

The COVID-19 hospital numbers from the health department are a snapshot in time of current patients at Ascension Via Christi and Wesley Healthcare facilities in the city. Current hospitalizations are reported by the county once a week, and it is not a cumulative count. The data includes patients from other counties who occupy hospital beds in Sedgwick County.

It’s the first time that reported hospitalizations grew in more than a month. The number had decreased all other weeks since peaking at 72 on Aug. 3.

The number of COVID-19 patients in intensive care units also grew. The increase of 10 put the total at 33 for coronavirus disease patients in the ICU. The number of available ICU beds dropped by 11, and about 10% of the approximately 208 ICU beds were available.

The number of COVID-19 patients in the ICU in Sedgwick County peaked at 35 on Aug. 24.

The area hospital status assessment remains “moderate.” County officials have not defined the term.

The Sedgwick County Health Department also reported 29 new cases of COVID-19 since Monday, bringing the cumulative total to 7,376. Of the new cases, 21 are still under investigation for the source of exposure. The other eight were close contacts of another confirmed case.

Three of the new cases were children or teenagers. The 20-39 age group had the most new cases at 13, followed by the 40-59 age group with nine. The 60-79 age group added four cases. There were no new cases among people 80 or older.

No new deaths were reported, keeping the total at 56. Another 372 people have been tested, bringing the total to 84,729.

The positive test rate has risen since hitting a two-month low of 7.32% on Friday. The rolling 14-day average rose to 7.93% on Monday, which is the most recent day with data available. The positivity rate may be revised as additional test results are reported.

This story was originally published September 8, 2020 at 3:19 PM.