TOLEDO, Ohio — After battling different working conditions for more than a year, nurses and doctors are finally seeing some relief in hospitals when it comes to COVID-19 patients.
However those who are being hospitalized have one thing in common: they are not vaccinated.
"It's really overwhelmingly people who have not been vaccinated," said Dr. Jennifer Hanrahan, an infectious disease expert with ProMedica.
Hanrahan said while there are a few cases of vaccinated people, most patients who are currently suffering from serious COVID-19 complications did not get the vaccine.
Some leave the hospital and choose to get the shot, others do not.
"Virtually all the cases we are seeing are in people who have not been vaccinated. People don't perceive themselves as being at risk, they figure that if they get it they're not going to get that sick which may or may not be true. It depends," said Hanrahan.
As of Monday, 42.5% of the Lucas County population is fully vaccinated.
And while vaccine clinics are popping up all over downtown and at other local businesses, the Lucas County Rec Center will stop distributing vaccines after this week.
Despite the rec center closing for vaccines, the health department plans to continue offering shots at various locations throughout the county to reach as many people as possible.