In chronic pain, Mary O\u2019Donnell can\u2019t get around much. At most, she manages to walk for a short time in her kitchen or garden before she has to sit down. \u201cIt\u2019s just frustrating at this point,\u201d said Ms. O\u2019Donnell, 80, who lives in Aloha, Ore. \u201cI\u2019m really depressed.\u201d<\/p>\n
She had been preparing for back surgery scheduled for Aug. 31, hoping the five-hour procedure would allow her to be more active. But a day before the operation, at OHSU Health Hillsboro Medical Center, she learned it had been canceled.<\/p>\n
\u201cNope, you can\u2019t come, our hospital is filling up,\u201d she said she was told.<\/p>\n
Faced with a surge of Covid-19 hospitalizations in Oregon, the hospital has not yet rescheduled her surgery. \u201cI don\u2019t know what is going to happen,\u201d Ms. O\u2019Donnell said, worrying that her ability to walk might be permanently impaired if she is forced to wait too long.<\/p>\n
Read it all<\/a>.<\/p>\n As the numbers of Covid-19 patients climb in some areas, hospitals are struggling to meet the needs of other patients. One hospital hasn't "recovered from the backlog we created" when it canceled elective procedures earlier in the pandemic https:\/\/t.co\/A7AAZZgDuT<\/a><\/p>\n — NYT Science (@NYTScience) September 23, 2021<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n \n