The School District of Beloit gives Beloit Health System the go-ahead to prepare Aldrich Intermediate School as a medical surge location.
The school board voted unanimously Thursday night to allow the health provider access to the building to move in 50 beds for overflow patients from Beloit Memorial Hospital.
Beloit Health System President Tim McKevitt said the school would not be intended to treat positive COVID-19 patients, but he can’t guarantee that coronavirus wouldn’t make its way into the building through asymptomatic carriers.
Beloit City Manager Lori Curtis-Luther told the school board she hopes they won’t have to use the surge facility, but the city wants to be prepared for as much overflow as it can.
In an email sent to interim Superintendent Sue Green on April 7, Curtis Luther wrote: “Our estimates predict the potential for overflow medical capacity being needed within 10 days.”
Beloit Health System would set up in the old gymnasium and old lunch room using the rear entrance on the south side of the building. The rest of the intermediate school would be sealed off.
McKevitt said Beloit Memorial Hospital could hold a maximum of 125-150 beds if it started using its auditorium as an additional ward.
They see Aldrich as the ideal location for a surge site because of its size and proximity to the health system. Curtis-Luther said they looked at using hotels and other buildings, but the options in Beloit did not have the kitchen capacity to provide meals for patients.
McKevitt said the health system has tested 160 patients as of Thursday afternoon, with six positive cases and 16 more results pending. Beloit has 25 ventilators available to treat patients, four of which are currently being used.
You can watch the Beloit Board of Education’s full special board meeting discussion courtesy of the School District of Beloit’s YouTube channel:
