Another patient diagnosed with COVID-19 was admitted to the UK Hospital late last night, UK Healthcare officials announced Wednesday at a media briefing.

The patient in question is one of just three Kentucky patients to test positive for COVID-19 at the UK Hospital, and only the second to be admitted. The only other COVID-19 patient to have been admitted to UK Healthcare was discharged late last week.

The patient currently admitted to UK Healthcare is said to be in “good condition,” according to Dr. Derek Forster, medical director of the infectious disease division. Prior to their admittance, the patient was previously being monitored at home by the state health department, Forster said. 

Gov. Andy Beshear announced yesterday that two more Kentuckians have been diagnosed with COVID-19, bringing the state’s total of confirmed cases up to 26. 

At their Wednesday briefing, UK Healthcare officials spoke to Beshear’s recent call for Kentucky hospitals to halt elective procedures in an effort to conserve valuable hospital resources.

While UK Healthcare will not cease all elective procedures, it has produced a plan that aims to “balance available resources such as personal protective equipment, open hospital beds and ventilators against elective procedures that use those resources,” said Executive Vice President for Health Affairs Dr. Mark Newman. 

An advanced vetting process is being implemented in order to ensure that “urgent and emergent” cases will still move forward, according to UK Healthcare officials. 

“Every patient has a unique story, and we pay attention to that,” said Dr. Chris DeSimone. “You cannot have just one list and one bucket and have everyone fall in those two categories.”

As for preserving essential supplies should Kentucky’s COVID-19 concerns worsen, UK Healthcare officials say they are prepared. 

“As of right now, we do have supplies to care for patients. Of course, the big concern is what will happen moving forward,” said Forster. “We’re actively monitoring that as far as cases in the community and looking at models and stuff like that.” 

UK Healthcare has already sought to bulk its supplies by seeking out reserve stockpiles of face masks and ordering more ventilators across its hospital, said Kim Blanton, nursing operations administrator for infectious diseases. 

“I feel like we have what we need, and we’re continuing monitoring that everyday, sometimes two or three times a day,” said Blanton.

UK Hospital currently owns 193 ventilators, a jump up from the 140 it reported last week, according to Blanton.