HAMMOND, La. — In several parishes, hospitalizations from COVID are on the rise and are paired with plateauing vaccination numbers.
At North Oaks Health Center in Hammond, the number of COVID patients has doubled over the last two weeks, according to Chief Medical Officer, Dr. Robert Peltier.
“We saw almost all of the parishes in southeast Louisiana double their rate of both the percent positivity and incidents,” said Dr. Peltier. “Unfortunately, what concerns me as the chief medical officer is that over the past three spikes we’ve had, we’re about two to three weeks after we see those numbers going up that our hospital tends to see the large numbers of patients.”
Dr. Peltier said nearly all of the COVID patients coming into North Oaks Health System never got the vaccine.
Only about one-third of the Northshore region has the shot, according to data from the Louisiana Department of Health.
Tangipahoa is one of the least-vaccinated parishes at 29.4 percent, and 9.9 percent of COVID tests are coming back positive.
Comparatively, Orleans Parish is more than 50 percent vaccinated, with a positivity rate under four percent.
Dr. Peltier said most vaccinated people, even if they contract COVID, don’t need to be hospitalized.
“What we don’t see in general is the vaccinated person needing serious medical care, including ICU care and ventilator. Of the people that have died at our facility in the past few months, all of them have been unvaccinated,” said Peltier.
As the more powerful Delta variant charges through Louisiana, North Oaks is prepping for another spike in COVID patients and perhaps, as a result, more demand for the vaccine.
“I hope it encourages some people that are on the fence to learn more about the vaccine and make a decision that’s good and right for them,” said Dr. Peltier. “We will continue to see some spikes until our population reaches herd immunity… and that’s either through vaccination or unfortunately if enough people get the virus. And unfortunately, that will increase our deaths.”
You can still get the vaccine at nearly any pharmacy or health center.
You can make an appointment at North Oaks online at covidvaccine.northoaks.org.