The number of COVID-19 patients being treated at The University of Kansas Health System is slightly higher today. 26 are in the hospital, compared to 23 yesterday. Nine of those patients are in the ICU, up from 7 yesterday, with five on ventilators, up from three yesterday.
A survey by the National Center for Health Statistics shows nearly 30 percent of us are experiencing symptoms of clinical depression, compared to six percent at the same time last year. The survey also showed 36 percent of us are feeling more anxious about life now compared to eight percent last year. Joining the briefing to offer hope and resiliency for the community during this pandemic were Archbishop Joseph Naumann of the Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas and Bishop Susan Candea of the Central States Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America.
Archbishop Naumann commented that many of us are affected by a feeling of isolation during the pandemic. It’s more so in the elderly, who are at a time of life when they are least able to cope with it. He’s also concerned about children and schools as every school, public or private, struggles with how to safely educate their students while protecting faculty and staff. He noted there are 21 counties in the Archdiocese, each with different levels of COVID-19, and each school must decide what’s best. He says Catholic schools are planning to open August 31 and the hope is to safely offer mostly in-person classes with some online learning. He says they are prepared to pull back from that if needed. He says online learning and home schooling are not without problems, especially for younger students. While he has temporarily released area Catholics from their obligation to attend Mass, many parishes offer their services online. He thanked Dr. Hawkinson for his help in advising the archdiocese in ways to safely allow a limited number of parishioners back to in-person services at each church. His best advice for all of us is to embrace our faith, do some physical activity, reach out to others, don’t focus too much on the news, and to quote scripture, “Be not afraid.”
Bishop Candea agrees the stress level is high since in past tough times we used to be able to gather together. She advises us to explore different ways of connecting with each other, and to take care of ourselves. She says we must acknowledge our fears, and activities like journaling and listening to music can help us cope. She takes frequent walks in nature and says “God and I have very loud conversations at times,” but finds that ability to release those inner frustrations very helpful. She believes we need to respect others and not attack people who make different decisions than our own. She says we can all take time to learn to love ourselves, our neighbors and God.
Dana Hawkinson, MD, medical director of infection prevention and control at The University of Kansas Health System, says he plans to send both of his middle school children to in-person classes because he believes it’s safe. But he agrees every family must make the choice that’s right for them. He agrees the data on COVID-19 is constantly evolving and says the best sources of current information are the CDC web site, the KDHE web site, and that of your local health department. He says we need to see the numbers decline, and the only way to do so for now is wear a mask, keep socially distant and not gather in large groups.
Friday, August 21 at 8:00 a.m. is the next morning media update. We will answer questions from the media and viewers, as well as show the next installment in our “Sunnye Says” series of videos for both kids and adults.
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 1-253-215-8782, 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.
