‘We’re all in it together:’ Minnesota ambulance crews keep working as COVID-19 numbers continue to rise.

Nathan Layne is in the midst of a 12-hour shift in the fight against COVID-19.

"It seems like we roll the dice every day," he says. "Our inter-facility guys are running non-stop."

An Allina Health Operations Supervisor, Layne is in charge of 25 paramedics, EMTs, and ambulances.

They cover what’s called the North Metro Primary Service Area, or PSA for short; 242 square miles in sections of Ramsey, Anoka, and Isanti Counties.

"We’re seeing numbers that we just haven’t seen," Layne declares during a ride-along in his coverage area. "Volumes are anywhere between 110%, 120% and 130% over our normal call volume."

Up to 40% of their calls are COVID-related.

Dozens of calls every day, sometimes, back-to-back.

"Over the summer, it was a break, almost," recalls paramedic Kat LaPorte. "Now it’s here and in full force, and I don’t know where we go from here."

LaPorte has been part of an ambulance crew for six years now, first as an EMT for two years, and a paramedic for four.

On the day KSTP stopped by, LaPorte was busily spraying sanitizer inside the interior of her rig between calls.

Cleaning out the transports is a necessary job for these crews, who continually face the threat of COVID contamination.

"No emergency is more important than wearing our PPE and making sure we’re protected before we meet a patient," LaPorte says quietly.

Still, the potential exposure and the long, stressful hours are taking their toll.

"I feel like it’s to the point where we’re not even safe in our own communities anymore because people don’t take it seriously," LaPorte says. "They don’t stay home, don’t wear their masks, and we’re the ones being affected."

Health care workers are getting sick– and the numbers are rising.

Full KSTP COVID-19 coverage

"You know, at times, we’ve had 20-plus people who’ve been out on leave, which is 5%, 6%, 7% of our workforce," Layne notes.

Emergency crews got some relief in November after the Federal Emergency Management Agency sent 25 ambulances, plus 65 paramedics, EMTs and supervisors to Minnesota.

Their mission is to transfer non-critical patients, allowing hospitals to expand their surge capacities.

The state’s EMS Regulatory Board says the deployment, extended until Thursday, is being withdrawn because of falling hospitalization numbers.

The board says during the week before Thanksgiving, ambulance crews statewide responded to 780 COVID-related calls, the highest number since the pandemic began.

The most recent numbers, from Dec. 5, shows that COVID-related calls dropped to about 640.

Still, many health care workers are bracing for a potential post-Thanksgiving, pre-Christmas surge. And whatever comes afterward.

"It’s crazy. It’s changed a lot of things for a lot of people," says EMT Dylan Mills about the pandemic. "Definitely interesting time we’re living in. Never thought I’d see something like this in my lifetime."

One of Mills’ jobs is to transfer patients from hospital to hospital, up to eight people a shift.

But he also transports a lot of virus patients. The work is difficult, but has its rewards, he says.

"We’re able to help people that otherwise can’t help themselves," he exclaims. "Something as simple as getting somebody up to their house, into their bed. Taking care of little things, that they wouldn’t be able to do on their own, can make a huge difference for those people."

But with the pandemic now in its ninth month, burnout is a growing problem.

Health care workers, like all of us, feeling the pandemic pressures– and missing the life before.

"It’s a mess. It feels like the new normal, and I hope that’s not actually the case," LaPorte says. "I miss my family, I miss concerts, getting to do things."

Layne understands the weariness, the frustration by his crews, their patients, and the public.

He hopes people won’t let their guard down in fighting this pandemic.

‘I really think it’s a small ask," he says. "Wear a mask, wash your hands, and we all have to make some sacrifices right now. It’s tough, it’s been tough, but we’re all in it together."

For all he has seen this year– the sickness, loss of life, a pandemic that never seems to end– Layne says he believes better days are coming.

He is proud of his team.

"You know, I’d like to think we are closer to the end than to the beginning now. Yeah, I do have hope," he says. "I can’t stress how resilient our people have been, how strong our people have been, and how well they’ve persevered through all of this. Because this is unprecedented times."