Another increase today in the number of COVID-19 patients being treated at The University of Kansas Health System. 26 are hospitalized, up from 24 yesterday. Nine patients are in the ICU, up from 7 yesterday. Three patients are on ventilators, same as yesterday. 21 other patients are still hospitalized because of COVID-19 but are out of the acute infection phase. That’s down from 24 yesterday. In addition, Hays Med reports 16 inpatients, with 14 actively sick and two recovering but no longer infectious.
On this morning’s briefing, Dr. Stites was live on the road in Hays, Kansas. The virus is spreading in smaller communities and he spoke about that with HaysMed Hospital Administrator Eddie Herrman and Dr. Heather Harris. In the studio with Dr. Hawkinson was Emergency Medicine physician Dr. David Lisbon who updated the different waves of this pandemic.
Eddie Herrman said having a mandatory mask order in Hays has helped keep the number of COVID-19 patients down at HaysMed. He’s seen that people are now understanding that wearing a mask is for the other person’s safety, but he’s noticed in lesser populated areas people are less diligent about it. He understands staying diligent wears on you, but we need to stay with it and avoid large groups to keep the virus at bay. He also says HaysMed has a good supply of personal protective equipment.
Dr. Harris is a family medicine physician who says everybody in Hays knows somebody who was sick. People, she says, now understand the virus is here. She says HaysMed has plenty of beds to treat COVID-19 patients, but staffing can get a little tight sometimes. She explained in medicine, they’re used to people coming and going pretty quickly as they improve, but with this virus, it takes a while for people to feel better. She noted that so far, schools in the Hays area are doing well. She had advice for how to handle college students coming home on break. She acknowledges people are anxious and sad and says we need to find a new focus, accept change and be patient.
Dr. Lisbon admits he was one of the doctors who at first didn’t think we’d still be talking about COVID-19 as we approach October. He says we’re now in what he calls the 4th wave of the social consequences of the pandemic, which include psychic trauma, mental illness, economic injury and burnout. He says the pandemic has been especially difficult on essential and front-line workers who have seen more exposure than others. He says the number of people coming to the emergency department is back to normal as they realize it’s safe. He urges everyone to remain hopeful and rely on the simple public health measures that work. He believes science will bring the answer to the pandemic.
Dana Hawkinson, MD, medical director of infection prevention and control at The University of Kansas Health System, answered a question about whether N-95 masks should be for everyone. He says they’re expensive, harder to find, require exact fitting and are best for medical professionals with direct exposure to COVID-19 patients. He says a surgical or cloth mask will do just as well for all of us. In fact, he says, it’s all he uses every day in the hospital. For Halloween, he and the CDC recommend masks for everyone, staying outdoors and in small groups rather than large. He also says there’s no evidence that nasal rinses will protect you from the virus. He reminds us that updates like this one present the most up to date, non-political but scientific information available.
Steve Stites, MD, chief medical officer of the health system, reminded us pandemics are hard, but the pillars of infection control follow us everywhere. He says the virus is everywhere, and is not the flu, noting it’s already caused more deaths than the flu. He believes the way we’ll get through this together is to remember our actions should be all about keeping each other safe.
Thursday, September 24 at 8:00 a.m. is the next morning media update. Joining the panel are Patrick Sallee, CEO Vibrant Health and Juliann Van Liew, director Unified Government of Wyandotte County and KCK Public Health. Together they will update the virus spread in the Dotte including the death toll which shows significant racial disparity.
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