BEAUMONT, Texas — After a major spike in coronavirus hospitalizations in Southeast Texas on Monday, the numbers have started to come back down.
The hospitalization rate, according to SETRAC, shows a big dip in the number of COVID-19 patients in general beds and in ICU beds.
Even though the numbers are trending in a better direction, some medical experts remain concerned.
The entire region's rate of total hospital beds is at 13 percent and Jefferson County's rate is at 16 percent as of Tuesday.
That's down 3 percent, and 8 percent from 12News' last report. Officials are tracking these numbers closely after Gov. Greg Abbott's executive order.
The order said if the number of COVID-19 patients exceeded 15 percent of total hospital beds in a region for 7 days, tougher restrictions would be needed.
Right now, Southeast Texas is clear of that 15 percent threshold.
Dr. Qamar Arfeen, a pulmonologist at Baptist Hospital, said he feels confident the state has a good plan to find open beds. His concern centers around how they will be staffed.
"The reality is, it's not that we don't have medicine; we have drugs. We could run out of man power that we are not able to take care of those patients," Arfeen said.
John Henderson works with the Texas Organization of Rural and Community Hospitals, a non-profit that aims to address the needs of rural hospitals. He explained why ICU care is a greater strain on hospital resources.
RELATED: Southeast Texas coronavirus hospitalizations soar, putting area at risk of scaling back to Phase II
"It's more like a one-to-one. So every patient is so critical or serious that you put them, or you match them up with a nurse that is caring for them around the clock," Henderson said.
Nurses caring for patients in general hospital beds sometimes care for 8-19 patients at a time.
So while the governor is looking at the overall hospitalization rate, other eyes in the local medical community are also keeping a close watch on the number of patients in the ICU.
The Southeast Texas region is below the governor's 15 percent threshold on Tuesday.
Portions of North Texas and West Texas have had to implement new restrictions.