The University of Kansas Health System reports a lower number of COVID-19 patients today. Nine people with the active virus are being treated, down from 12 yesterday. Of those patients, two are in the ICU, the same as yesterday. One patient is on a ventilator, down from two yesterday. The number of recovering patients, those still in the hospital but out of the active infectious phase, is nine, down from ten yesterday. That’s 18 total patients, down from 22 yesterday. HaysMed reports no COVID-19 patients. Of the health system’s patients, only one has been vaccinated, which mirrors the nationwide trend that the vast majority of patients with severe and critical disease are unvaccinated. They stressed that continued hesitancy and argument about vaccine safety is just not valid. They also noted the huge surge of patients in Springfield, Missouri,100 of them in one hospital alone, most with the Delta variant, which threatens to overwhelm healthcare facilities in that city. They say 99 percent of those patients are unvaccinated.
On today’s Morning Media Update, we introduced Max Huntley live from Jefferson City, who recently celebrated his 12th birthday. For one of his presents, he asked to get his COVID-19 vaccine. Max joined us with his parents Guy and Laura to share his story. Also, Steve Stites, MD, chief medical officer at The University of Kansas Health System, Dana Hawkinson, MD, medical director of Infection Prevention at the health system, and Lance Williamson, Infection Prevention and Control nurse supervisor, answered community questions.
Before getting to community questions, Max Huntley described his birthday presents. He feels his most important gift was the chance to get vaccinated. He says he did it because he wanted to keep himself and others safe and has several friends who have also been vaccinated. He even talked his older sister into getting the vaccine. She had been hesitant because of allergies but is getting hers today. His parents are proud of Max, and know the vaccine is safe after talking with doctors. They are glad the whole family will now be vaccinated, which makes going with Max to his travelling soccer league games much safer.
Here are the media and community questions in the order the panel addressed them, followed by the short answer. Time code for the question is in parentheses. See the video for their full answers and comments.
- (11:50) Do the mRNA vaccines, Pfizer and Moderna, and/or J&J vaccines protect against the Delta variant? Which one works the best? All protect effectively against the Delta variant.
- (13:30) If I had COVID-19 in the past, am I protected against the Delta variant? If you didn’t have the Delta variant your immunity will be not be as good as getting vaccinated.
- (14:45) How many people hospitalized in Springfield, Missouri are vaccinated? Why don't they report that daily? Can’t speak for Springfield, but the health system, has begun keeping track. It’s clear that our hospitalized patients are pretty much all unvaccinated.
- (16:50) Does long COVID have any adverse effects on a person's thyroid? No medical evidence of that happening.
- (17:30) Did lack of taking the COVID-19 virus seriously allow for the stronger Delta variant to exist? And, if more people fail to get vaccinated, will an even stronger variant appear? When does this end? Not wearing masks and not taking the rules of infection prevention seriously definitely contributed to increased virus mutations. Until the whole world is vaccinated, we will continue to struggle with COVID-19 and its mutations.
- (20:35) With the Delta variant in Missouri, is it safe to go to the Chiefs training camp up in St. Joseph and attend 4th of July celebrations? Any outside activities will be safer, especially for those vaccinated, but don’t forget those under 12 who are not vaccinated.
- (22:55) Should vaccinated people be concerned about attending football games this fall? Will we need masks then? Vaccinated people should be safe without a mask.
- (26:40) Why did the CDC have people stop wearing masks and everything open up? It feels like a bad call. The CDC recommendations, based on science and evidence, say vaccinated people are safe and able to resume normal activities. The idea was to change the behavior of those not vaccinated, not wearing masks, and not observing the pillars of infection prevention.
- (30:15) Do you know how much natural immunity is reduced when on chemotherapy to fight cancer and how effective vaccines might be? There is no one answer for everyone. It depends on the amount of chemotherapy and the level of immunosuppression.
- (31:55) What percentage of the adult population has had two shots? Do you need to be fully vaccinated to protect against and not spread the Delta variant? 46% of Americans are fully vaccinated, 54% have had one shot. Full vaccination is best at preventing the spread of the variants.
- (34:10) Is there a low demand for vaccines among teens in the Metro? There is a report the Kansas City Public Schools canceled a clinic because nobody signed up. The demand seems to be lagging, as some teens and their parents don’t think they’ll get sick.
- (36:15) I’ve heard the Delta variant can transmit in seconds. Is that true? No data to show it can transmit that quickly, but it does spread easier, especially in unvaccinated communities.
- (37:55) Are we seeing unvaccinated people getting COVID-19 a second time? Yes. Some have it better and some have it worse. The way to break that chain is get vaccinated.
- (38:15) Should parents worry about their children coming down with myocarditis? Max’s parents decided the risk of COVID-19 far outweighed the risk of complications. They educated themselves and asked questions.
- (39:10) Any idea how long clinical trials involving vaccine and immunocompromised people might last? Probably another 6-12 months.
- (40:50) Is the health system receiving any patients from Springfield and is Springfield running low on supplies? Not sure if we’ve had any or not but could take them if needed. There may be a slight struggle on PPE, but nothing like at the beginning of the pandemic.
- (43:00) Long haulers have been reporting improvement in their symptoms after getting the vaccine. Is this actually happening? A very small study a couple of months ago showed a third of these patients had improved symptoms after being vaccinated.
- (44:00) I know a couple who have had COVID-19 two times. The last time they had monoclonal antibody treatment. They think they’re immune and are refusing the vaccine. Every time a new article comes out about adverse side effects, they use it to justify not getting the vaccine. How do you convince these people to get vaccinated? You don’t. But getting COVID-19 twice does not protect you against the Delta variant. And monoclonal antibody treatment has more side effects than a vaccination. Why worry about vaccine side effects if you were willing to get monoclonal antibodies?
- (45:50) Did Dr. Hawkinson fly or drive to his Colorado vacation? He drove, but flew on a trip last month, and felt safe when taking the precautions.
Monday, June 28 at 8:00 a.m. is the next Morning Media Update. Dr. Jill Huded (WHO -dead), one of our primary care physicians and geriatricians will join us, along with Janet Carlson Baker, Executive Director of KC Shepherd's Center, to talk about the impact of COVID-19 on active and homebound seniors. The isolation of the pandemic has taken a significant toll on this group who make up about 15% of the population on both sides of the state line.
ATTENTION: media procedure for calling in:
The meeting is available by Zoom, both video and by phone. To join the Zoom Meeting by video, click https://kumc-ois.zoom.us/j/7828978628
Telephone dial-in Participants: For those without Zoom, call 1-312-626-6799, meeting ID: 782 897 8628.
The feed is also available via TVU grid. The TVU source is UoK_Health and is being made available to all.
Feel free to send questions in advance to medicalnewsnetwork@kumc.edu.