The number of COVID-19 patients at The University of Kansas Health System is still dropping today. 11 people with the active virus are being treated, down from 14 yesterday. Of those patients, two are in the ICU, down from three yesterday. Both of those ICU patients are on ventilators today, the same as yesterday. 23 other patients are still hospitalized because of COVID-19 but are out of the acute infection phase, the same as yesterday. That’s a total of 34 patients, down from 37 yesterday. In addition, HaysMed has a total of ten COVID-19 inpatients, up from nine yesterday, with two of those active patients and eight in the recovery phase. Doctors noted it’s been last summer since the numbers have been this low.
On today’s Morning Media Update, KDHE Secretary Dr. Lee Norman returned to update the vaccine rollout, the current infection rate and give us insight into what is happening with an Ebola outbreak in the Congo. Also, David Wild, MD, VP of Performance Improvement at The University of Kansas Health System, shared some compelling facts about the year since the pandemic broke out.
Dr. Wild began by showing that The United States has four percent of the world’s population but has had 20 percent of the world’s deaths with 525,000. He calls that, “a staggering number, especially for a single disease.” Of the country’s 330 million people, 29.1 million have had COVID-19. 30 percent of the vaccines administered around the world have been administered in The U.S. In Kansas, here have been 296,451 cases, 9,411 hospitalizations and 4,816 deaths in the last year. In that same time period, the health system has had 2,252 unique patients admitted for the disease, some admitted twice. 331 of those died, with the average age of patients at 58. The health system has administered 35,000 doses of the vaccine, and of the 182,000 COVID-19 tests administered, 12,000 have been positive.
Dr. Norman discussed when Kansas might move to Phase 3 of the vaccination schedule saying there are still quite a lot of people in phase two to be vaccinated. He says the state will take a measured approach based on CDC recommendations and won’t be too restrictive or too liberal. He added, “I can guarantee you, we won’t look like Texas.” He explained masking, hand washing and social distancing combined with vaccinations have made a big difference, with only four deaths in Kansas over the weekend, and just 100-150 new cases a day. He compared that with 2,000 new cases a day not long ago. He also noted the positivity rate is down to 2.9 percent from a high of 16-18 percent. He’s optimistic the state will continue to show improvement in the coming weeks as more vaccine becomes available. He also touched on an Ebola outbreak in the Congo, saying there is not as much concern for a worldwide spread as the outbreak of 2014. He says there are better immunizations and treatments for the disease today. He gave a shout out to school nurses, who he says wear many hats and are often unappreciated, especially in the pandemic.
Dana Hawkinson, MD, medical director of Infection Prevention and Control at The University of Kansas Health System, is optimistic that it won’t be long before anyone can walk into their local pharmacy or primary care doctor and get the vaccine. He’s also happy about the fact that the 140 million flu tests around the country so far this year have resulted in only 1700 positive tests. He says one of the best lessons we’ve learned in the year of COVID-19 is that mask wearing, social distancing and hand washing work. He explained we’ll need to be vigilant about the variants, but the good news is the manufacturers have the ability to adjust their vaccines in a short time.
Steve Stites, MD, chief medical officer at The University of Kansas Health System, has noted a cultural change in the Metro about mask wearing while out shopping and on walks in Loose Park or the Plaza. He said in the next four weeks, the vaccine supplies will change, and the new challenge will be getting it all administered as quickly as possible. He reminds us a simple little mask will keep us safe no matter where you go or what you do, and the rules of infection control will see us through the pandemic.
Wednesday, March 10 at 8:00 a.m. is the next Morning Media Update. we will update the COVID-19 impact on sperm and male fertility. Dr. Ajay Nangia, Vice Chair of Urology at KUMC and urologist here at the health system will join to talk about a small study on the topic and compare the impact on sperm by this virus to other viruses.
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.