INDIANAPOLIS – Experts say Indiana is still seeing a surge of COVID-19 due to the delta variant, but they predict cases may peak within the next week or two.

“Our hospitals continue to remain very, very full of both COVID and non-COVID patients, really at capacity or beyond capacity,” said Dr. Ram Yeleti, chief physician executive for Community Health Network.

Community Health Network is currently seeing more people hospitalized with COVID-19 than at any other time during the pandemic, Dr. Yeleti said.

“We are just literally busting at the seams,” Dr. Yeleti said.

Indiana might be close to the worst of this surge, according to Brian Dixon, Ph.D., of the Regenstrief Institute.

Based on trends in other states and countries, new cases in Indiana’s latest surge could peak in a week or two, with hospitalizations peaking statewide within two weeks after that, Dixon said.

“Last fall we peaked at about I think 3,500 people in the hospital,” Dixon said. “We don’t think that we’re going to get that high this time.”

Experts say although Indiana may be close to a peak with the delta variant, it’s still important to be careful.

“I know a lot of people are going back to the office,” Dixon said. “A lot of places are trying to kind of resume normal activities, but it may be prudent to sort of put the pause on that at least for another week or two.”

“There’s this other variant like the mu variant, other variants out there,” Dr. Yeleti said. “So I would still tell you that even if we get through the surge, this is called a novel coronavirus. Novel meaning new. There’s a lot we don’t know about it.”

Because hospitals are so busy right now, unless you’re having an urgent medical issue, it’s best not to go to the emergency room right now if you can avoid doing so, Dr. Yeleti said. He recommends seeing a family doctor instead.