BRG Mid City Hospital Prepares for COVID Surge

Around the state, Gov. Edwards is working to increase hospital surge capacity as we fight COVID-19. At Baton Rouge General, we have spent the last several weeks mobilizing every resource we have to prepare. We have thousands of team members working every day to care for patients. However, our Mid City hospital has units that are not being used to their full capacity. This weekend, we finalized an agreement to make our Mid City hospital an important part of our community’s surge plan. We are working with Gov. Edwards and his team to prepare the hospital for treating COVID patients in our community.

Patients at Bluebonnet and in existing Mid City units will not be moved and will continue to be cared for in the same way they always have been. The newly opened beds will operate as a separate acute-care hospital that is equipped and staffed to care for COVID patients who aren’t able to get care elsewhere. We will work closely with the other hospitals in our area to be flexible and collaborative as we all work together through this challenge.

We hope to have a portion of the hospital open this week, with the remainder opening in phases as the needs of our community grow and we secure the staff and resources necessary to operate. Because our team at Bluebonnet is already working around the clock, we need new employees to help us staff Mid City. We are asking any and all clinically trained professionals to consider joining us as we fight this virus. Clinicians who work in surgery centers that are currently closed, clinics that aren’t seeing patients right now, or even people who may have transitioned into other careers – we need you!