CentraCare Asking for Help Reducing Pressure on ER Beds

ST. CLOUD -- CentraCare is asking for the community's help to try to ease the stress on the emergency room at St. Cloud Hospital.

Hospital officials say their beds are full and they're struggling to find beds for critically ill patients.

Clinical staff are exhausted as a result of the pandemic, increased patients, and ongoing staffing issues. CentraCare says the hospital emergency room is packed with patients who must wait hours for care.

CentraCare is asking for the community's help to get vaccinated, practice social distancing and wear masks.

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Other ways you can help include using urgent care instead of the emergency room if possible. Use their eClinic, speak with a nurse on CentraCare Connect, or schedule same-day appointments with your primary care provider.

If you do have a medical emergency, always call 911 or go to the ER.

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Vaccinations for COVID-19 began being administered in the U.S. on Dec. 14, 2020. The quick rollout came a little more than a year after the virus was first identified in November 2019. The impressive speed with which vaccines were developed has also left a lot of people with a lot of questions. The questions range from the practical—how will I get vaccinated?—to the scientific—how do these vaccines even work?

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