Washington (CNN) nation’s hospitals are dealing with “severe” and “widespread” shortages of needed medical supplies, hampering the ability to test and respond to the coronavirus pandemic adequately and protect medical staff,
according to a new report from a government inspector general.
The findings by the inspector general for the Department of Health and Human Services describe a dire situation for front-line doctors and medical staff as cases mount in hospitals.
The assessment, the first internal government look at the response, was based on interviews from March – 39 with administrators from more than (hospitals across) states , Washington, DC, and Puerto Rico.
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The report provides an accounting of the shortages faced by hospitals nationwide in trying to obtain equipment for staff and patients, including the avenues some hospitals turned to to acquire those items, like online retailers and paint stores. It also details the challenges hospitals faced in trying to keep up with testing demands and the inconsistent guidance that caused confusion.
The report is not a review of the Health and Human Service Department’s response to the coronavirus outbreak and acknowledges the pandemic is “fast-moving, as are the efforts to address it. ”
“Since our interviews, some hospital challenges may have worsened and others may have improved,” the report states .
Still, multiple media reports have revealed the obstacles before hospitals in trying to protect their own staff, while also treating an onslaught of patients. Among those obstacles has been the lack of testing.
According to the HHS IG report, the shortage of testing supplies, coupled with delays in results, led to patients staying in beds longer, staff using personal protective equipment that they may not have needed to use, and staff possibly exposing themselves to patients with the virus without knowing.
Hospitals reported waiting seven days or longer for test results, the HHS IG found. One hospital said hours would usually be considered an extensive wait time for virus testing.
“An administrator at another hospital noted that the sooner the hospital knows whether patients are negative, the faster it can move them to a lower level of care that consumes fewer resources, “the report reads. “As one administrator put it, ‘sitting with 64 patients with presumed positives in our hospital is not healthy for anybody. ”
disrupted the supply chain and contributed to the delays. 
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