Another storm is on its way. Here's how to stay safe from storm-related injuries.
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) - Hospitals in the Philadelphia area are preparing for the potential of more patients with storm-related injuries ahead of another storm forecasted to move into the region Friday night.
Hospitals are already crowded with patients sick with respiratory infections, like COVID-19 and the flu.
Doctors recommend people be prepared if the storms cause power outages and other disruptions. They're advising people to have their prescription filed, and if they need oxygen or dialysis, to have a plan if there's no electricity.
Dr. Nicole Tyczynska with Virtua Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital is sick of the nasty weather.
"[It's] definitely frustrating," she said.
For Tyczynska, it means the emergency department at Virtua Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital is going to get even busier. They're already overwhelmed with respiratory illnesses.
"Any time there's a storm, we see a lot of injuries," Tyczynska said.
Tyczynska said storm-related injuries are usually related to falls or other mishaps that happen during clean-ups. She said orthopedic injuries such as hip fractures, spinal fractures and head injuries are among the most common.
She said power outages, which are expected again Friday night into Saturday morning, can be especially dangerous for people with medical conditions.
"A lot of patients are dependent on electrical medical equipment, whether that's oxygen source, CPAP," Tyczynska said. "For patients like that, being prepared for power outage [means] knowing what medical equipment you have, making sure you have a back-up battery source or back-up generator."
Tyczynska said people need to be careful with generators and fireplaces to make sure there's adequate ventilation, so they're not overcome by carbon monoxide.
Also, bad weather might have people stuck inside for a while. She said they need to make sure they have all their medications.
"The things we see in the emergency department that is most dangerous is, people three days later not having their insulin and being in a diabetic emergency," Tyczynska said. "Another common thing we find is people not being able to get out to dialysis because of weather and then coming in days later short of breath, having a lot of metabolic emergencies."
Between flooding and power outages, followed by a freezing blast, it's best to be prepared ahead of time.
"The extremes of weather are most dangerous for extreme of ages," Tyczynska said, "the very young and very old."
Tyczynska said those high-risk groups are especially susceptible to extreme cold, which is in the forecast. For them, it's best to plan to stay inside, in well heated locations.
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