Dr. Patrick O'Shaugnessy, executive vice president and chief clinical officer...

Dr. Patrick O'Shaugnessy, executive vice president and chief clinical officer at Catholic Health Services, said the new normal will include people carrying a mask, wipes and gloves everywhere. Credit: Howard Schnapp

If the reopening of Long Island leads to an increase in COVID-19 patients, Long Island hospital executives said they're prepared.

Hospitals in the region have seen a steady decline of patients since the peak, which took place around April 10. Health systems have reported a drop of 80% in patients since.

"The second time around is like having a second child in that it's a lot easier," said Dr. David Battinelli, chief medical officer at Northwell Health, the largest health system in the state. "We expanded by 2,000 beds when the pandemic hit. We could do that again tomorrow if we had to."

In March as the pandemic hit New York, Battinelli said Northwell also had "no idea" how much personal protective equipment it should stockpile or how many employees should be moved to support an outbreak.

"There were a lot of what ifs," he said. "It turned out we were all right with PPE, but this time we have a better idea of what we need."

Long Island will start its first phase of reopening Wednesday, after a coronavirus shutdown of nonessential businesses that's lasted more than two months, Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo said. He added that the region needs to be aware of any resurgence.

The first phase of reopening is geared to restore economic activity in construction, manufacturing, curbside retail or in-store pickup, as well as wholesale trade and agriculture, and forestry, fishing and hunting, according to state guidelines.

Battinelli said he expects further COVID-19 spread to be more aggressive once travel and mass transit starts back.

"When you look at airports, subways and escalators, these are indoor areas with a density of exchanges," he said. "But hopefully it will be OK, because people will still wear a mask and socially distance properly."

Dr. Patrick O'Shaugnessy, executive vice president and chief clinical officer at Catholic Health Services, said "all the trends are good, but this is no time for complacency."

He said the new normal will include "situational awareness," which means as people leave their house, it could include carrying a mask, wipes and gloves everywhere.

O'Shaughnessy said Catholic Health Services in March expanded its bed capacity by between 50% and 70% at each of its six hospitals on Long Island. 

"We can flip back to COVID operations in 48 to 72 hours," he said. 

NYU Winthrop is seeing 10 times more non-COVID-19 patients than COVID-19 patients admitted, said Dr. Joseph Greco, the Mineola-based hospital's chief of hospital operations. He expects the trend away from COVID-19 patients to continue.

"We've seen people go out the last few weekends, and maybe throw caution to the wind a little bit," he said. "We haven't seen the numbers go up. Luckily we continue to see a decrease. But if that changes, and there is a surge of some kind, we will be ready."

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