Doctors and nurses are gearing up for any emergency that comes their way.

“We do everything we can here to keep people safe,” said William Paolo, who is Upstate Medical University’s Department of Emergency Medicine interim chair.

The Emergency Department at Upstate University Hospital is used to responding to people with chest or stomach pain, shortness of breath and other serious health risks. But they’ve seen fewer patients since the coronavirus pandemic started.

“We’ve seen in our adult population is about 20% less people come to the emergency department,” said Paolo. “In addition, in our pediatric emergency department, we’re seeing about 60% less of the patients we would normally see.”  

Paolo is worried people are delaying care because of the virus. But, he wants to reassure them that the hospital is taking precautions.

“We ensure that when you’re here, you have a low rate of any chance of getting any infectious disease in the hospital itself,” said Paolo. “So, the masks that we all wear right now, the safe distance we keep from one another, all ensures that we keep people safe.”

They also keep patients in specific areas depending on their illness.

“We have 2 triage areas set up right now,” said Paolo. “This area is for if we do not believe you have COVID, then we put you in this triage area. There’s a separate triage area if we believe you have COVID.”

Paolo says don’t disregard the discomfort because it will hurt you more in the long run.

“We know heart attacks and strokes have a time sensitive nature to help people recover,” said Paolo. “I would much rather see them come than stay away.”

Instead, let the symptoms be your signal to seek care immediately.