December could bring sharp rise in Oregon COVID-19 deaths

Health officials are warning that the darkest days of the coronavirus pandemic could lie ahead.

Oregon has already seen several days where virus case counts were above the 1,000 mark. The past couple days have also seen daily death counts at 20 or higher.

Those numbers, coupled with the fact that increased death counts lag behind increased case counts, worries doctors.

“The fact that we’re seeing an increased number of people dying in our ICUs now, as we’re moving into the winter and people moving indoors and seeing the prevalence increase,” said Dr. David Zonies, associate chief medical officer of Critical Health at OHSU Health System. “That is a significant warning sign that we’re going to see more critically ill patients and there are going to be more deaths. Those are the hard facts.”

While the medical community has learned a lot about the coronavirus and has been able to reduce mortality, officials say little to no hospital capacity could lead to more deaths.

“Unfortunately, we see death rates go up from this virus when hospitals get overwhelmed,” said Dr. Jennifer Vines, health officer for Multnomah County. “Not everyone gets the care they would under more normal circumstances.”

Despite the bleak forecast, Dr. Zonies still sees room for hope amid numbers that are trending in the wrong direction.

“We’re trying to prepare for it as best we can, but these will be very dark days,” said Dr. Zonies. “But I still believe there is an opportunity to turn this around. There’s still an opportunity to take the social responsibility and follow what we know is working.”