Leominster, MA– UMass Memorial Health – HealthAlliance Clinton Hospital today celebrated the opening of a new Multi-Disciplinary Clinic on the Leominster Campus. The Clinic is designed to bring specific specialties to the Northern Worcester County region and allow local patients the ease of access to the specialty care they need closer to home.

Federal officials at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) updated mask guidance this week to suggest Americans choose N95 or KN95s if possible, as respirators better stem the spread of SARS-CoV-2 spread this winter.

Experts have previously confirmed that Omicron spreads at a faster, more effective rate compared to earlier virus variants, and respirators like the N95 provide those in public a boost in subsequent filtration abilities if worn correctly.

BOSTON (CBS) – Massachusetts hospital leaders issued a dire warning Friday that they’re “in crisis” and “every corner of our healthcare system is gasping for air.”

The Massachusetts Health & Hospital Association, an organization of dozens of hospitals in the state, wrote a letter to the public saying “the stability of the system hangs in the balance” during this latest surge in the pandemic.

WORCESTER -  Over a dozen beds fill the room at the American Red Cross blood donation center on Plantation Street. During a 45-minute visit on Wednesday afternoon, only one of them was occupied. 

“Donations are down over half nationwide,” Jeff Hall, a spokesperson for the American Red Cross of Massachusetts, said at the door. He explained that the organization likes to keep a 3-day supply of blood; he said the state currently has just over a 1-day supply.

Six in 10 Americans have a chronic disease, and 4 in 10 have received a diagnosis of 2 or more chronic diseases.¹ Millions of Americans live with and manage cancer; diabetes; epilepsy; Alzheimer disease; heart, lung, and kidney disease; rheumatoid arthritis; and other conditions. Many participate in ongoing medication therapy, prescribed regimens, and regular medical support.

The American Red Cross has declared its first-ever national blood crisis in the U.S., warning the public about the worst shortage in over a decade.

The nonprofit said in a statement this week that U.S. blood centers in recent weeks have reported "less than a one-day’s supply of blood of certain critical blood types—a dangerously low level." It noted a decline in donor turnout since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, in addition to blood drive cancellations, staffing challenges and donor eligibility misinformation.

WORCESTER — COVID-19 continues to wallop Central Massachusetts, with UMass Memorial Health President and CEO Dr. Eric Dickson reporting a 40% positivity rate Monday at testing sites, while hospitalizations that have surpassed previous pandemic highs.

“This is crunch time for us,” Dickson said in an interview Monday. “It’s just put an enormous, enormous strain on the hospital.”

The president of UMass Memorial Health last week expressed to staff that “all hands-on deck” were required to help with COVID-19 testing sites both in Worcester and Marlborough as the omicron variant continues to surge within the region.

Last Friday, President and CEO Dr. Eric Dickson explained the urgency of the situation in a message sent to UMass Memorial Health’s Core Management team, the organization said.

Virtually all COVID-19 cases in Massachusetts are now resulting from the omicron variant. It took over in hospitals in late December, according to an analysis from Cambridge Health Alliance. It’s still early in the omicron surge, but it’s coming on fast, so we asked several doctors and nurses what they are seeing with omicron, to get a sense of how patients are faring and how this surge compares to prior waves of COVID.