Pandemic Response: Inside Sioux City's hospitals during COVID-19

SIOUX CITY, Iowa — Last spring, COVID-19 brought a surge of patients overwhelming hospitals across the country.

Here in Sioux City, UnityPoint Health-St. Luke's and MercyOne Siouxland Medical Center each treated dozens of COVID-positive patients during our local surge in May and June. All this week in exclusive interviews with Siouxland News, local hospital staff are sharing their experiences with the COVID-19 pandemic.

SUNDAY, OCT. 4TH: On the Front Line: From the first COVID-19 cases to treatments

COVID-19 has touched nearly every part of our lives. From the first case here in Siouxland in early March through today, local healthcare professionals discuss the pandemic response and where we go from here.

MONDAY, OCT. 5TH: On the Front Line: Life during the surge

One hospital in Sioux City went from having 10 COVID-19 patients admitting to 45 patients in just a few days as Woodbury County, Dakota County and the surrounding communities saw a surge of COVID-1 cases in April, May and June. As hospitalizations and deaths rose, our local healthcare professionals were working tirelessly to keep all patients safe. In Part 2 of our series, local healthcare professionals discuss "the surge" and how they are preparing for a possible second wave this fall.

TUESDAY, OCT. 6TH: On the Front Line: Patient care in a pandemic

Patient care has evolved over the last several months, as hospitals adjust to COVID-19 protocols, including the way doctors and patients interact. Doctors in Siouxland have adjusted to new protocols as more information is discovered about the novel coronavirus. In part 3 of our series of we sat down with local doctors and other healthcare professionals to see how they care for patients amid the pandemic.

WEDNESDAY, OCT. 7TH: On the Front Line: Caring for the Caretakers

They have been the true heroes of this pandemic, working directly with those hardest hit by COVID-19. Healthcare workers are on the frontlines in the fight against this pandemic, but while they are treating patients who is looking out for them? In part four, the Siouxland News team sat down with care providers from UnityPoint Health-St. Lukes and MercyOne Siouxland Medical Center to look at the risks medical staff working with COVID Positive patients take physically, mentally, and emotionally. We also look at how those care centers are stepping up to help those who spend their lives helping others.

THURSDAY, OCT. 8TH: On The Frontline: The Community Behind the Caretakers

Hospitals are the places where the community goes to seek help but during the COVID-19 pandemic, Siouxlanders stepped up and gave back to those working tirelessly on the front lines. Their generosity didn't go unnoticed, in part five of our six-part series UnityPoint Health-St. Luke's highlights some of their favorite moments of community support. They showed us how those acts of kindness helped front line workers get through their toughest days.

FRIDAY, OCT. 9TH: On The Front Line: Healthcare after COVID-19

A lot has changed in the last several months as COVID-19 has come into our everyday lives. From the way we greet our friends and strangers, to the place many of us now work, there is hardly a piece left unchanged. That includes healthcare. While some changes within our nation's medical system are only temporary, there are areas of healthcare that doctors say has changed permanently.