UM's Mott Children's Hospital at 100% capacity amid respiratory virus surge

Hannah Mackay
The Detroit News

Michigan Medicine's C.S. Mott Children's Hospital on Thursday said it has reached capacity and is experiencing a pediatric bed shortage as respiratory virus cases surge in children and flu season begins.

Corewell Health East, previously known as Beaumont Health, treated 571 pediatric RSV cases in the week of Oct. 31 to Nov. 6, up from 72 during the last week in September.

The Helen DeVos Children's Hospital in Grand Rapids, operated by Corewell Health West, typically sees 145 kids a day in its Emergency Department but is now averaging over 225 cases a day. The hospital typically operates 24 beds in the intensive care unit but reported having 42 ICU patients on Wednesday. Around 60 children receiving inpatient care at the Hellen DeVos Children's Hospital had RSV as of Wednesday.

"We have never seen a surge in pediatric respiratory viruses like this before. Our hospital is 100% full," Luanne Thomas Ewald, chief operating officer at Mott and Von Voigtlander Women's Hospital, said in a news release. "This is incredibly concerning because we haven’t even seen the full impact of flu season yet."

Other hospitals also are experiencing high levels of RSV cases, but the pediatric intensive care unit occupancy rate in Michigan has dipped. Statewide data indicates an 86% pediatric ICU occupancy as of Thursday, down from 89% last Friday.

"In addition to the high rates of RSV, the state is averaging over 30 COVID pediatric patients in Michigan hospitals over the past month while experiencing higher rates of flu compared to the past several years," said John Karasinski, spokesman for the Michigan Health and Hospital Association. "Capacity is also strained by critical staffing shortages."

Mott Children's Hospital has treated 259 RSV, or Respiratory Syncytial Virus, patients this year, up 46% from 2021. And there's no sign of the surge letting up. Of those cases, 154 were admitted during October.

RSV is a respiratory infection that causes cold-like symptoms, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The virus is very common and most people have been exposed by the age of two.

While RSV symptoms in adults are typically resolved in a week or two, they can be serious and life-threatening in young children and older adults. RSV can cause pneumonia and bronchiolitis, or an inflammation of the lung, which can make breathing difficult for babies.

"The vast majority of children with RSV experience cold symptoms and can rest and recover at home," said Kimberly Monroe, interim chief clinical officer and a pediatric hospitalist at Mott, in a news release. "However, if they’re showing any signs of severe illness, such as trouble breathing, they may need immediate care and should be brought to the emergency department. We’re particularly concerned about children under the age of two."

The Michigan hospital association warned late last week that emergency room capacity is limited in some areas by patients seeking non-emergency care. The emergency department at Mott Children's Hospital reports increased wait times and the hospital has started to postpone some elective surgeries. They urge parents to contact their primary care provider if their children come down with a respiratory illness.

Any child in respiratory distress should be taken to the emergency room. Signs of babies in distress include flared nostrils, grunting respirations, increased respiratory rate, tugging in between the ribs and seesaw respirations.

Hospitals across Michigan and the rest of the country are also seeing upticks in pediatric RSV cases. On Monday, Corewell Health East began restricting children under the age of five from visiting patients to minimize exposure.

Pediatricians said the surge may be the result of waning immunity in children following COVID-19 lockdowns or people paying less attention to public health measures like masking, washing hands and staying home when sick. RSV surges typically last for two to four months during the winter and experts say this one has not peaked yet.

Mott Children's Hospital is exploring strategies to increase its hospital bed capacity and working with other pediatric hospitals to provide for all children, according to the news release.

"It is something that's very scary to families you know, even if your child just gets a really bad cold at home," Mott's Monroe said. "This is bread and butter pediatrics. Most kids are at home, some kids will get admitted, and for those patients, they just might need a little bit of oxygen, maybe they need some IV fluids. ... An even smaller amount of children will actually need help breathing. So they'll need ventilatory support."

Patients at the Helen DeVos Children’s Hospital Emergency Department may receive their care in the hallway, in a bed or in a chair, pediatric Emergency Department physician Erica Michiels said at a Wednesday press conference.

"We will find a place for your child if they need to be hospitalized, but it may take a little longer and you might have a roommate," Michiels said.

Many hospitals are worried about being further overwhelmed this winter in the event of a "tridemic" or coinciding surges of RSV, influenza and COVID-19. All three viruses cause respiratory illness and physicians encourage everyone to get vaccinated for COVID-19 and influenza and to practice good hygiene by washing their hands, masking in public and staying home when sick.

hmackay@detroitnews.com