Sparrow discharges its 1,000 COVID-19 patient

LANSING, MI – Sparrow has reached a milestone in saving patients from COVID-19, discharging its 1,000th patient after treatment for the virus.

Sparrow now counts well over 1,100 victories against COVID since the pandemic began locally in March. Sparrow has been a national healthcare leader during the pandemic, becoming one of the first hospitals in Michigan to provide COVID tests to inpatients, and performing hundreds of thousands of tests for the community through its drive-thru locations. Sparrow also recently began an innovative policy of allowing families to visit COVID patients, reducing their isolation and loneliness during treatment.

“The journey from one to 1,000 has been an odyssey of epic proportions,” said Sparrow Hospital President Alan Vierling. “There have been 10,000 days of worry for family and thousands of hours of some of the most exhausting work any of us have known. The 1,000 patients represent an enormous commitment to the community. There have been thousands of acts of compassion and thousands of difficult decisions.

“The organization has at the same time never performed more as a team and a family. And yet for every victory there have been moments of profound sadness. The 1,000 patients is a testimony to our neverending quest to be here when ever we are needed regardless of the cost to us personally and professionally. We are fortunate to be in the position to serve. There is no greater honor and the 1,000 patients proves the worth of our effort.”