Middletown's Two Hospitals See Spike In COVID Admissions

MIDDLETOWN, NJ — Bayshore and Riverview, the two community hospitals that serve Middletown, are both seeing an increase in the number of patients admitted with coronavirus.

"We are experiencing COVID-19 volumes not seen since early June. These recent numbers lead us to believe we are experiencing our second wave," said M. Todd Way, the president of what Hackensack Meridian Health calls its "Central Market," which includes Riverview Medical Center in Red Bank and Bayshore Medical Center in Holmdel.

While no hospital would give specific patient numbers, as of Thursday, Nov. 12, there are a total of 338 COVID patients admitted across all Hackensack Meridian hospitals statewide.

Also on Thursday, Monmouth County reported 250 new positive cases. Compare that to July, when Monmouth County was reporting about 20 new cases every day.

RWJBarnabas Health, which operates Monmouth Medical Center in Long Branch, said it was seeing the greatest increase in COVID admissions in the northern half of the state, particularly in Essex County.

A second wave this fall and winter "had been predicted" and all RWJBarnabas hospitals have been "stockpiling PPE and medications," said Dr. Christopher Freer, who runs their emergency medicine department.

They've also contracted to hire more nurses this winter.

Hackensack Meridian hospitals are participating in several vaccine trials, including the Moderna and J&J trials, said Way. Hackensack Meridian is also providing support to Pfizer, which has developed a vaccine that is 90 percent effective.

"At Hackensack Meridian Health, our physicians and scientists are developing potential breakthroughs including conducting clinical trials on new therapies such as convalescent plasma therapy and Regeneron, an antibody treatment given to President Trump and former Governor Chris Christie," said Way.

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