After a big weekend drop in the number of COVID-19 patients at The University of Kansas Health System, today’s numbers are steady. Nine people with the active virus are being treated, the same as yesterday. Of those patients, three are in the ICU, down from four yesterday. Just one of those patients is on a ventilator, the same as yesterday. 11 other patients are still hospitalized because of COVID-19 but are out of the acute infection phase, up from ten yesterday. That’s a total of 20 patients, up from 19 yesterday. HaysMed has two active patients and one recovering patient, the same as yesterday.
Doctors noted that some of the nine active patients were admitted for something else and a routine screening discovered the virus. They said overall COVID-19 testing is down.
On today’s Morning Media Update, this is national EMS week. We explored the pandemic's impact on emergency workers on the front lines in the community. Dr. Chad Cannon, chair and clinical service chief of emergency medicine at the health system and Dr. Ryan Jacobsen, EMS physician adviser to the health system and medical director of Johnson County EMS shared how their work has changed.
Dr. Cannon says the emergency department is doing well, after seeing patient volume plummet when the pandemic broke out last year. Many people were afraid to come to the hospital, figuring that’s where all the COVID-19 patients were, so those who eventually did seek emergency care were a lot sicker. He says people have overcome that fear and uncertainty and patient numbers are back to normal. He said the staff have been extremely safe with a 99 percent vaccination rate. During the whole pandemic only a few ED workers caught COVID-19, and it was determined they got it from family members. He also said no patients got the disease while in the Emergency Department or the hospital. He announced that starting today E.D. patients will be offered the vaccine. He also wants people to know that while at the height of the pandemic, there may have been a capacity problem but that’s not the case anymore. He strongly encourages everyone who needs emergency care to seek it right away. He says dealing with the pandemic has been the hardest thing he’s had to do in his career
Dr. Jacobsen says the pandemic has taken a toll on EMS providers, with many suffering post-traumatic stress disorder, and there is currently a national shortage of workers in that field. He outlined the steps they’ve taken to help, including peer support, and taking units out of service after traumatic calls so the crew can deal with the emotional distress. It’s also permanently changed the way they do things, including mask wearing for providers and patients, given the fact they’re both in the back of an enclosed ambulance. He also says at the beginning of the pandemic, EMS workers were worried about bringing the disease back to their families, so many of them chose to stay in hotels. But since 85 to 90 percent of them have been vaccinated and there is plenty of personal protective equipment to go around, that’s no longer a concern. He calls it an honor and a privilege to serve alongside EMS workers and congratulates them during this EMS week for surviving such a tough year.
Dana Hawkinson, MD, medical director of Infection Prevention and Control at The University of Kansas Health System, had an update on his children, 12-year-old Caroline and 14-year-old Wyatt, who both received their first dose of the vaccine live on yesterday’s Morning Media Update. Each experienced a sore arm for a short time, which is expected, but nothing else. His daughter even asked when the side effects were supposed to kick in. He told them they’d be out of the woods for symptoms by noon today. He says he’s completely confident in the safety of the vaccine for his own children and encourages all parents to get their kids 12 and older vaccinated as soon as possible. He pointed out being vaccinated will help his children, and others, go on vacation this summer and participate in things like sports camps, which might be limited for those not vaccinated.
Steve Stites, MD, chief medical officer at The University of Kansas Health System, reminds us COVID-19 is still prevalent in the community, even though testing is down. He says the number of patients in hospital beds is the bellwether of the disease and we’re clearly down, but we can’t let our guard down. He knows we all want to get back to normal but stresses the only way to do that is for all of us to get vaccinated.
Wednesday, May 19 at 8:00 a.m. is the next Morning Media Update. Is there a COVID-19 stroke connection? Our experts explain why this is complicated question that worries many neurologists and heart doctors. Our experts are Dr. Colleen Lechtenberg, neurologist and Director of The Advanced Comprehensive Stroke Center and Dr. Matt Jones, Internal medicine.
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