Clinics in the district at the limit: "It's a balancing act"

Created: 03/30/2022, 19:45

By: Dominik Stallein

The corona virus does not spare the employees in the two clinics in the Bad Tölz-Wolfratshausen district.

There are currently numerous corona-related failures.

© Sabine Hermsdorf-Hiss

The corona virus, especially the omicron variant, causes numerous failures among clinic staff in the Bad Tölz-Wolfratshausen district.

Wolfratshausen/Bad Tölz - The corona virus is spreading faster than ever: The Bavaria-wide seven-day incidence was 2151.9 on Tuesday.

Many industries are struggling with the absence of their employees due to corona.

A development that does not stop at the two clinics in the district.

Clinics in the district of Bad Tölz-Wolfratshausen staffing at the limit: "It's a balancing act"

"We have had many sick leave in our ranks for about 14 days," reports Ingo Kühn, Managing Director of the Wolfratshausen District Clinic.

"It's a big challenge." The operation in the hospital on Moosbauerweg is running normally - "we haven't had to close any area" - but that is only possible with a lot of effort.

"We're not lying idle, but it's a balancing act," says Managing Director Kühn.

The exhaustion is noticeable in doctors and nurses.

Ingo Kühn, Managing Director of the Wolfratshausen District Clinic

After more than two years of fighting the pandemic, there is another problem: "The doctors and nurses are feeling exhausted," Corona is sapping the strength of the staff.

Not only because many Covid patients have to be treated as inpatients, "but also because the work has become more strenuous and complicated," says Kühn, referring to the hygiene requirements and the protective equipment that medical and nursing staff have to change from patient to patient.

"That makes things even more difficult for the employees."

Unvaccinated employees are still allowed to work in the hospitals

Another sword of Damocles is hanging over clinics and nursing homes: for a few days now, facility-related vaccinations have been compulsory in Bavaria’s clinics.

So far, however, unvaccinated employees have also been allowed to work.

"We reported them to the health department," explains Managing Director Kühn.

He doesn't want to give specific numbers, but "we don't have very many people affected".

There are unvaccinated people across all professional groups of the approximately 400 district clinic employees.

They should now attend a vaccination consultation.

The ultimate consequence could be a ban on entry - but only as an "ultima ratio", as Bavaria's Health Minister Klaus Holetschek (CSU) recently emphasized.

The Asklepios city clinic is not worried about this at the moment: "We benefit from a very high vaccination rate of our staff of currently around 95 percent fully vaccinated, of which a large proportion are already boosted employees," explains press spokesman Christopher Horn.

The vaccination obligation currently has “no effect on the clinic’s operations”.

Childcare tears gaps in the ranks of clinic employees

The situation is different with cases of illness: "We also have such cases from Omikron," says Horn.

It is only thanks to "a high level of flexibility and the great commitment of our team that all areas and stations can currently be operated".

Not only do the employees who actually tested positive cause short-term changes to the roster, the quarantine rules in kindergartens and schools also pose a problem: “Many employees have to pick up their children at short notice and then look after them at home.” These cases are currently “one of the most common reasons for failures".

Asklepios City Clinic has treated over 1000 corona patients to date

In view of the high hurdles, Horn pays tribute to his colleagues: "The burden on our team is still high", more than 1000 corona patients have been treated in Bad Tölz since the outbreak of the pandemic.

"The commitment and motivation with which the teams face this challenge is admirable." (dst)

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