Medical City spokesperson Kathleen Beathard said there are other facilities within Medical City’s network at which patients can undergo certain surgeries.
"While our 16 hospitals are in 4 North Texas counties, we have addressed this goal as a system, rather than county by county," Beathard said in a statement. "Beyond our hospitals, we also have alternate settings for surgeries available to us, including surgery centers and specialty hospitals, all of which are considered in our decision to schedule surgery for a patient."
As of July 13, Dallas, Tarrant, Collin and Denton counties' total hospital bed occupancy was at 70.8%, according to The University of Texas at Dallas Institute for Urban Policy Research.
"In the spirit of Governor Abbott’s executive order regarding elective surgeries, our goal is to maintain readiness and preserve hospital inpatient capacity, staffing and [personal protective equipment] to care for COVID-19 patients,” Beathard said.
Medical City is aiming to restart elective surgeries July 27. As a general guideline, procedures the may be allowed to continue are those that would need to be performed within the next 30 days, Beathard said, although those who are experiencing a medical emergency should not delay in seeking care.
The news comes as more than 38% of DFW residents reported delaying medical care in the past four weeks due to the coronavirus pandemic, according to the results of the U.S. Census Bureau's Household Pulse Survey conducted between June 25-30.
"While we currently have adequate capacity, staff, and PPE, we are concerned that there is a misconception in the community that this rate of growth can continue without consequences,” Beathard said in the statement.
On July 13, Tarrant County reported 322 new COVID-19 cases. Dallas County reported, 1,114 new cases, Collin County reported 152 new cases and Denton County reported 113 new cases.
