There has been in increase in the number of COVID-19 patients at The University of Kansas Health System over the weekend. 12 patients with the active virus are being treated, up from nine on Friday. Four of those patients are in the ICU, up from two Friday, with three of those patients on ventilators, up from one on Friday. Nine other patients are still hospitalized because of COVID-19 but are out of the acute infection phase, the same as Friday. That’s a total of 21 patients, up from 18 Friday. HaysMed has one patient today. Doctors noted that except for one patient with multiple health problems, nobody who’s really sick in the hospital has been vaccinated. They also believe most of those patients have the Delta variant.
On today’s Morning Media Update, Dr. Jill Huded (WHO -dead), one of our primary care physicians and geriatricians joined 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.
Before getting into today’s topic, Doctors brought up a study just out today in the journal Nature that shows the Moderna and Pfizer vaccines may potentially give us lifetime immunity. It suggests the only reason for a booster would be to fight the variants, not a waning of the immunity. They all agreed that would be remarkable if true.
Dr. Huded sees a lot of older patients and says the pandemic has had a huge effect on their mental and physical health. Many have increased frailty and cognitive impairment and are at risk of more long-term complications from COVID-19. Those who were hospitalized and released face longer rehab stays, and usually take months to regain their physical strength. Even for those not hospitalized, the social isolation of the pandemic has led to a syndrome she calls “Bed, Kitchen, Sofa,” which she says is the routine many fall into when they have no social interaction. That leads to loneliness, depression, and anxiety. She talked of one patient in assisted living who hugged a teddy bear that her granddaughter gave her every day for ten months because she wasn’t able to hug any real person. She feels in this second year of the pandemic, we need to support our caregivers, many of whom are burned out. She suggests long term care facilities incrementally bring their residents to the dining room in small numbers to help them get over their fear of being with others and to help with social interaction.
Janet Carlson Baker says the KC Shepherd’s Center exists to help keep older adults engaged past the work world or child-raising days. One way is providing volunteer activities, such as delivering meals on wheels. She says as people age through the process, they may no longer be able to deliver meals on wheels, but need that service themselves. Or instead of being a senior companion to a homebound older adult they may need a senior companion themselves. She says those socially isolated before COVID will be isolated after COVID, and some may never feel comfortable in group settings. She showed evidence of how that isolation increases dementia and mortality and explained that social isolation is the physical equivalent of smoking 15 cigarettes a day. Keeping older adults engaged, she says, is saving lives. Her organization also has come up with bracelets that say “I’m vaccinated,” which people can get for free at the KC Shepherd’s Center web site. There is also a way on their site to support their work with a donation.
Dana Hawkinson, MD, medical director of Infection Prevention and Control at The University of Kansas Health System, joined by phone while returning from his Colorado vacation. He said some countries like Israel and Australia are considering restrictions again because of the rise in the Delta variant. He also says there is no reason to delay pregnancy because of worries about the vaccine. It’s proven very safe and can even transmit some antibodies to the babies. The recommendation is for everyone to get vaccinated as soon as possible. He reminds us that any natural immunity you may have from the virus will most likely not protect you from the variants, which are becoming more and more prevalent.
Steve Stites, MD, chief medical officer at The University of Kansas Health System, says it may be a challenge to convince those under 30 to get vaccinated, as many think they are invincible. But he reminds us the average age of hospitalized COVID-19 patients in Springfield, Missouri is 42 with one 25-year-old on life support here at the health system. He says there’s no question that if you’re young, you’re vulnerable to the Delta variant and that COVID-19 doesn’t care how old you are. With some parts of the world beginning to reinstate restrictions because not enough people are vaccinated, he says we all need to be vaccinated to keep ourselves, our loved ones, and our friends safe.
Tuesday, June 29 at 8:00 a.m. is the next Morning Media Update. We head out to the Olathe Fire Department where fire fighters will give us a demonstration on the dangers of fireworks and share some stories. In the studio, we will have our medical director of the burn unit, Dr. Dhaval Bhavsar with advice on what to do and what NOT to do if you or someone you love gets injured. And, we'll talk more about keeping safe from COVID at public celebrations.
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