Kansas City area hospital has 500 staff out from work because of COVID as cases surge
One of the largest hospitals in the Kansas City metro has more than 500 employees out of the workplace because of the coronavirus.
The University of Kansas Health System is missing more than 500 of its more than 13,500 employees because staff either tested positive for COVID-19 or are awaiting test results following symptoms or an exposure to the virus, hospital staff said Monday.
“We’re doing our best to keep everything going,” Dr. Steve Stites, chief medical officer at The University of Kansas Health System said Monday during the health system’s regular COVID update. “That’s our job.”
As of Monday, the hospital was treating 108 patients for the coronavirus. Just a month ago, on Dec. 1, the hospital was treating 40 COVID-19 infections.
This staffing shortage comes as the country and region face another swell in cases with the introduction of the omicron variant. For this reason, a shortage in available staff isn’t unique to the University of Kansas Health System.
“We’re all hit by the same issue: lots of staff out,” Stites said. “And I think this is an omicron story, the high transmissibility.”
They continue caring for patients despite this he said, adding that the present staff are doubling down and continuing to grind on.
The Associate Press contributed reporting.
This story was originally published January 3, 2022 at 1:57 PM.
