ST. LOUIS — Rain or shine, and in this case snow, healthcare staff are working 24/7 to serve the public, even if that means sleeping at the hospital until the storm passes.
"Hospitals 24/7. We don't close down and usually actually we're even busier when other people are able to stay home," Saint Louis University Hospital Administrative Supervisor Janice Lewis said.
She has a different take on what a snow day means for their staff.
"We call it Hotel De SLU, which is when we decide whether or not we are going to open it up and allow for people to stay after their shifts," Vice President of Operations Bryan Walrath said.
He converted their conference room center into a make-shift hotel for staff to voluntarily stay the night during the winter storm.
"We allow for about 50-60 staff members that otherwise wouldn't stay here for as an on call staff member to stay and prepare for that next shift so they don't have to get back on the treacherous roads," Walrath said.
They set up cots with linens and offer toiletries and meal vouchers for employees during their stay.
"Some of them pack bags, and bring their pillows and bring their own stuff because ours probably isn't quite the same as their pillows," Lewis said.
Mercy Hospital has a similar set up available for workers through Friday morning.
"We did have about 30 people that stayed today and slept in various locations that we created around the hospital so that they could have a place to rest," Vice President of Operations of Mercy South Carol Ellis said.
Ellis said many of their workers weren't able to drive to work, so the ones who stayed are filling in.
"They're not only covering their own work, but they're also supporting each other so that as a team we can care for patients," Ellis said.
They are anticipating an influx of patients from winter storm emergencies, while also treating current hospitalizations from the pandemic.
"With COVID it's already a challenge so obviously adding snow on top of that is a double challenge so we are doing the best we can," Lewis said.
There is a pay incentive for staff who choose to stay overnight.
Barnes Jewish Hospital also set up cots for staff to spend the night and have contracts with a local hotel chain to give discounts for workers who choose to stay there.