The numbers are down today for active COVID-19 patients being treated at The University of Kansas Health System. 60 people with the active virus are hospitalized, down from 63 yesterday. 11 patients are in the ICU, down from 16 yesterday. 10 of those ICU patients are on ventilators today, down from 11 yesterday. 52 other patients are still hospitalized because of COVID-19 but are out of the acute infection phase, down from 57 yesterday. That’s a total of 112 patients, down from 120 yesterday. In addition, HaysMed has a total of 16 COVID-19 inpatients, down from 20 yesterday, with 12 of those active patients and 4 in the recovery phase.
Doctors are encouraged by the trend of lower numbers and the lower test positivity rate but warn the virus variant could be a wild card for us.
On today’s Morning Media Update, U.S. Senator Jerry Moran from Kansas joined from Washington, D.C. and Dr. Jessica Kalender-Rich, national member of the Coronavirus Commission for Safety and Quality in Nursing Homes and a general medicine doctor with the health system answered questions about seniors getting the vaccine.
Senator Moran discussed his recent tour of the health system’s new mass vaccination clinic. He noted patients are grateful for the chance to return to a life closer to normal. He feels the vaccine is creating hope and he is promoting the value of being vaccinated. He says the biggest problem has been in the supply and in helping people understand when it’s their turn. But he understands it’s just as frustrating for those giving the vaccine because they may not know how much or when they are getting the vaccine until it arrives. He’s looking into the problem to see how more can be made and how the logistics of distribution can be simplified. He also explained he’s part of a group called the Sweet 16, eight Democratic and eight Republican senators looking at what the next Federal COVID-19 relief package should look like. He advised everyone to wear a mask and says just because a county does not require it, it doesn’t change our personal responsibility to wear one and observe the pillars of infection prevention.
Dr. Kalender-Rich said there have been challenges in rolling out the vaccine in nursing homes, similar to the whole community. But she says thanks to the government partnership with CVS and Walgreen’s, all the nursing homes have been offered their first dose. She said residents have really taken to the vaccine while there have been challenges getting staff to accept it. She said there has been no change in policy regarding visits, but they are waiting for government guidance. She advises those 65 and older to be patient, that the vaccine is coming. She also says isolating and mask wearing won’t go away for some time, and notes it feels more normal now to wear a mask than it did six months ago.
Dana Hawkinson, MD, medical director of Infection Prevention and Control at The University of Kansas Health System, reported after receiving his second dose of the Moderna vaccine yesterday, he had some shoulder soreness later in the day, but it was gone this morning. Otherwise he’s had no side effects. He warns against a false sense of security from the vaccine and says you can still transmit the virus after you’re fully immunized. He said despite the vaccines, we expect to continue masking well into 2021. He feels the numbers of infections are down not because of the vaccine but because of a culture change with more people wearing masks now than even in October and November. To those who ask about wearing a second mask, he quotes Dr. Fauci who says, “It makes common sense.” He said even though there has been no study or data released that shows two masks are better, “If it makes you feel better and you can tolerate it, I don’t have a problem with that.”
Steve Stites, MD, chief medical officer at The University of Kansas Health System, is glad to see there are many more “vaccine now-ers” rather than vaccine deniers and said whatever can be done to increase the supply will be great. He’s worried people are still coming to the hospital later for non-COVID problems and warns us to “Be careful about being afraid. It’s right to be afraid of COVID out in the community. It’s not right to sacrifice your health because you’re afraid to come to the hospital.” He stresses hospitals are one of the safest places there are in a pandemic because they’ve been wearing masks for generations and they work. He urges us to keep each other safe by always wearing a mask and keeping our distance.
Thursday, January 28 at 8:00 a.m. is the next Morning Media Update. Dr. Kevin Ault, OBGYN and member of the CDC Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices updates us on today’s emergency meeting to talk about several things including vaccine effectiveness and pediatric clinical trials. He may also have an update on the Johnson & Johnson vaccine. And Dr. Roy Jensen, director of the University of Kansas Cancer Center will share news of a letter to the public from leading national cancer centers encouraging annual cancer screenings. This is due to an alarming number of canceled screenings during the pandemic which are predicted to result in ten thousand excess breast and colorectal cancer deaths in the next ten years.
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