‘I still see the numbers going up’: Weekly check-in with UMC’s Dr. Jose Burgos

EL PASO, Texas (KVIA) -- In an effort to deliver the most comprehensive coronavirus coverage, ABC-7 has started a weekly feature where we ask Dr. Jose Burgos, the director of internal medicine at University Medical Center, the same seven questions each week to track how the pandemic is changing.

Here's the Q&A for October 8:

Mauricio Casillas (KVIA): How has this past week gone for you?

Dr. Jose Burgos (UMC’s Director of Internal Medicine): "We had a busy week. Definitely our numbers are creeping up. We're almost at the same level as we were in the first wave of Covid, so we have been busy."

Casillas: Can hospitals handle the current number of patients?

Burgos: "We can definitely handle the current number of patients. Now we have more experience than before so we can work better on the bed accommodations."

Casillas: What should people at home be doing right now?

Burgos: "If you're getting together with friends, and these are friends that you don't deal with often, remember that they are getting exposed and they might bring the virus home, or you can bring the virus to them. Just be mindful of that."

Casillas: What is the most eye-opening thing you’ve seen this week?

Burgos: "The fact that our numbers are coming up. We're pretty much at the same level as we were in the first wave. This is concerning. We knew this was going to happen when we spoke last week. We're seeing how people, it seems like are less concerned with the virus. But the virus is still out there."

Casillas: What is your prediction for next week?

Burgos: "I still see the numbers going up. Unfortunately, we might need at least a couple of months to see the numbers coming down. That depends on how people are behaving socially. That is the only thing that can bring the numbers down."

Casillas: What is giving you hope at this time?

Burgos: "Our treatments are working. If we start treatment early, then we can prevent people from getting sick enough from ending up in the intensive care unit. We can keep people from coming to the hospitals."

Casillas: What is your message to the Borderland?

Burgos: "If you're sick, if you have any respiratory conditions, stay home. If you're really sick, seek medical attention. That's it. That's the way to do it. There's nothing else. Remember, we're developing treatments and vaccines because we are not successful at practicing social distancing. If we were doing this the right way, then we might not even need all of these other things."

Statistics for October 8:

• 26,969 total cases, 4,929 active cases, 541 deaths in El Paso County

Here's a list of earlier segments:

• April 9 Q&A: (225 cases , 1 death)
• April 16 Q&A: (451 cases, 7 deaths)
• April 23 Q&A: (675 total cases, 543 active cases, 10 deaths)
• April 30 Q&A: (924 total cases, 506 active cases, 21 deaths)
• May 7 Q&A: (1,190 total cases, 541 active cases, 30 deaths)
• May 14 Q&A: (1,607 total cases, 771 active cases, 43 deaths)
• May 21 Q&A: (2,046 total cases, 883 active cases, 57 deaths)
• May 28 Q&A: (2,569 total cases, 1,032 active cases, 72 deaths)
• June 4 Q&A: (3,069 total cases, 1,059 active cases, 89 deaths)
• June 11 Q&A: (3,650 total cases, 1,015 active cases, 97 deaths)
• June 18 Q&A: (4,088 total cases, 946 active cases, 119 deaths)
• June 25 Q&A: (4,984 total cases, 1394 active cases, 125 deaths)
• July 2 Q&A: (6,389 total cases, 2,223 active cases, 132 deaths)
• July 9 Q&A: (8,385 total cases, 3,085 active cases, 145 deaths)
• July 16 Q&A: (10,638 total cases, 3,708 active cases, 173 deaths)
• July 23 Q&A: (12,501 total cases, 3,564 active cases, 211 deaths)
• July 31 Q&A: (14,276 total cases, 3,311 active cases, 266 deaths)
• August 6: (15,596 total cases, 3,747 active cases, 285 deaths)
• August 13 Q&A: (17,378 total cases, 4,166 active cases, 330 deaths)
• August 20 Q&A: (19,057 total cases, 4200 active cases, 382 deaths)
• August 27 Q&A: (19,925 total cases, 3,102 active cases, 410 deaths)
• September 3 Q&A: (20,686 total cases, 2,822 active cases, 429 deaths)
• September 10 Q&A: (21,335 total cases, 2,724 active cases, 452 deaths)
• September 17 Q&A: (22,078 total cases, 2,801 active cases, 479 deaths)
• September 24 Q&A: (23,207 total cases, 3,300 active cases, 508 deaths)
• October 1 Q&A: (24,666 total cases, 3,812 active cases, 524 deaths)