Salinas Valley Memorial Hospital prepares for possibility of opening third COVID-19 unit

SALINAS, Calif. (KION) Salinas Valley Memorial Hospital officials said they currently have 19 COVID-19 patients at the hospital and have opened a second unit.

The original unit had 14 rooms, and the new unit has 13 rooms. The hospital said it is also preparing to open a third COVID-19 unit with 13 rooms if necessary. The highest number of patients in the hospital at any one time is 26.

More than a thousand people have tested positive at the hospital in total.

The hospital provided video giving an inside look into the original COVID-19 unit. It used to serve stroke patients, but was converted in March. Each room has glass doors to allow healthcare workers to monitor patients, and the hospital said nurses in the patient's room often use a marker to write vital signs on the door for their partner outside to enter into the computer.