Early Experience Managing a High-volume Academic Orthopaedic Department During the Coronavirus Pandemic in New York City

• Published in: Journal of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons Vol. 28; no. 19; p. e865
• Main Authors: Sharfman, Zachary T, Loloi, Jeremy, Krystal, Jonathan, Fornari, Eric, Levin, Paul, Levy, I Martin, Cobelli, Neil J, Geller, David S, Kim, Sun Jin
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States 01.10.2020
• Subjects: Academic Medical Centers - organization & administration; Betacoronavirus; Coronavirus Infections - epidemiology; Coronavirus Infections - therapy; COVID-19; Hospital Departments - organization & administration; Hospitals, High-Volume; Humans; New York City - epidemiology; Orthopedics; Pandemics; Patient Care Management - methods; Pneumonia, Viral - epidemiology; Pneumonia, Viral - therapy; SARS-CoV-2; New York City
• ISSN: 1940-5480
• DOI: 10.5435/JAAOS-D-20-00412

Our orthopaedic surgery department at Montefiore Medical Center and Albert Einstein College of Medicine is located within the Bronx, a borough of New York City, and serves a densely populated urban community. Since the beginning of the novel coronavirus outbreak in New York City, the medical center was forced to rapidly adapt to the projected influx of critically ill patients. The aim of this report is to outline how our large academic orthopaedic surgery department adopted changes and alternative practices in response to the most daunting challenge to public health in our region in over a century. We hope that this report provides insight for others facing similar challenges.