Bureaucracy, turf battles and communication failures prevented the transfer of patients, and staff found themselves almost twiddling their thumbs.

“I basically got paid $2,000 a day to sit on my phone and look at Facebook,” Katie Capano, a nurse practitioner from Baltimore who worked at Billie Jean King, told the Times. “We all felt guilty. I felt really ashamed, to be honest.”


Nonetheless, now that the U.S. has surpassed 5 million cases in the last 100 days, states with the highest numbers are still building these makeshift emergency care sites. Only this time they hope to get it right by learning from those that failed.

Georgia Governor Brian Kemp announced on July 31, 2020 that the Georgia World Congress Center would reopen and begin receiving COVID-19 patients on August 3. With a total capacity of 120 beds, the facility will house an initial surge of 60 beds and increase based on need. Kemp says hospitals and healthcare providers will be able to quickly identify hospital bed capacity for COVID-19 patients statewide via a partnership with Grady Health System to expand and renew the existing Regional Coordinating Center as the Georgia Coordinating Center. This will be facilitated through a web-based platform developed by Grady that enables hospitals across the state to view and report critical information, including current diversion status and bed availability.

"By leveraging an existing partnership with Grady Health System, the Georgia Coordinating Center will allow hospitals to use real-time, statewide information to ensure their patients receive the care they need," said Kemp in a statement. "I greatly appreciate Grady's willingness to offer their expertise and provide this critical service to Georgia as we continue our fight against COVID-19."

Georgia currently has more than 225,000 cases, 21,000 hospitalizations, and nearly 4,000 ICU admissions, according to the Georgia Department of Public Health.

Back to HCB News

Business Affairs Homepage