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Hundreds of hospitalized COVID-19 patients recover in Colorado

UCHealth said 370 people recovered enough to go home while more than 250 remain hospitalized in the system.

DENVER — Hundreds of COVID-19 patients who were treated at UCHealth hospitals across Colorado recovered enough to be able to be sent home, according to a spokesperson for the hospitals.

UCHealth announced Tuesday that more than 370 people treated for the disease caused by the novel coronavirus were treated and then later released.

Hakan Karan, a husband and father from Colorado Springs is one of those patients. He was admitted on March 25 to Memorial Hospital North with COVID-19. Karan spent a week on a ventilator. He was finally released to go home on April 10.

“We celebrate each and every time one of our patients recovers,” said Jessica Yoo, a nurse and house supervisor at Memorial Hospital. “Seeing patients go home and be reunited with their loved ones gives us renewed energy and optimism.”

About 250 other COVID-19 patients continue to receive care at UCHealth hospitals. The first case of COVID-19 was reported in Colorado on March 5. As of the morning of April 14, more than 7,691 people have tested positive, and 308 people have died. Of those who tested positive 1,493 have been hospitalized. 

RELATED: Colorado coronavirus latest, April 14

Since the beginning of the pandemic, UCHealth has tested over 10,500 people for COVID-19 and recently expanded testing for first responders and other health care workers.

Of the more than 370 patients who have recovered enough to be discharged from hospitals, more than 50 were in UCHealth’s southern Colorado hospitals, almost 200 were in metro Denver hospitals, and 120 were treated in northern Colorado hospitals.

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Social distancing remains the most important thing Coloradans can do to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

“Our numbers of hospitalized patients remain near record highs, however, we’re beginning to see some positive trends. The rate of increase of new cases has slowed, and our number of hospitalized patients is growing more slowly, but it is essential that Coloradans continue to practice social distancing. The minute we let up, we will likely see cases spike again,” said Dr. Richard Zane, UCHealth chief innovation officer and emergency services executive director.

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