Kansas City’s top medical doctors issued a warning to the region about the spread of COVID-19. They argued not enough people in the Kansas City area are wearing masks and following the pillars of infection control to keep COVID-19 from spreading as schools reopen. The briefing from chief medical officers (CMO’s) at six area hospitals came together as an idea during their weekly conference call. Being on the frontlines of the pandemic, they saw firsthand the continued widespread transmission of COVID-19 in the area. The briefing, hosted by the Kansas City Chamber of Commerce, allowed school, business and political leaders to talk, as well. Kansas City, Kansas Mayor David Alvey hosted the briefing, and led with some sobering information. A state is considered in the “red zone” when the COVID-19 positivity testing rate reaches 10%. A few weeks ago, when Dr. Deborah Birx, Coronavirus Response Coordinator for the White House Coronavirus Task Force came to town, she warned that the Midwest could become the next Texas or Florida. At that time, the rate in Kansas was 9.9%. Today Kansas is 16% and Missouri is 13.4%. His message was simple: “Either we get greater control of the virus, or the virus will take greater control of our health, our economy, our daily activities. We can get to the Green Zone: our people, our businesses can do this.”
Dr. Steve Stites, CMO at The University of Kansas Health System, moderated the discussion, and said “We have zero ties to industry. We have zero ties to politics. We're just here to tell you what we think is the truth.” He added, “Collectively, we are here today to convey a clear message of urgency to recommit to a strong, comprehensive response focusing on safe social and economic activity and robust public health tools.” He said that we don’t want to fulfill Dr. Birx’s prediction, and strong infection control is the key.
Dr. Raghu Adiga, CMO of Liberty Hospital, said mask wearing and social distancing are necessary and are making a difference in reducing the spread of this disease. He also says school opening and youth sports are challenging as our community seeks to halt the spread of the disease, allowing all activities to resume normal operations when safe.
Dr. Mark Steele, CMO at Truman Medical Centers/University Health, said companies and employers have an important role to play in helping stop the spread of the disease by encouraging employees who are sick to stay home and not spread the disease but also not risk losing their jobs. He noted that Truman recently changed its policy to not require employees who test positive for COVID-19 to use their vacation time while on quarantine. He also cited the example of a Springfield, Mo. hair salon in which two stylists who tested positive did not spread the disease because they were wearing masks.
Dr. Jim Stewart, CMO at North Kansas City Hospital, noted young adults in social settings are a major cause for the resurgence of the virus, and that needs to be addressed. He said often those young adults return home and infect their parents. He added college campuses and activities are also large sources of social activities and pose unique challenges.
Dr. Jennifer Scrimsher is with Lawrence Memorial Hospital. She discussed the reopening of KU and said it is a microcosm of the pandemic at large. She described how the reopening coincided with a rise in COVID-19 cases. She also noted that when the city of Lawrence closed all the bars, the infection rate went down. She said that may have helped keep the KU student infection rate at 2%.
The CMO of the VA Hospital, Dr. Ahmad Batrash, pointed out Veterans tend to have more comorbidities than the general population making them more vulnerable to severe disease and long-lasting complications if they get COVID-19. The test positivity rate for KC area veterans (6.5% in the last week and 5.8% overall for Kansas City VA veterans) has consistently been lower than the general Missouri and Kansas population. He says this could be related to better access to timely testing and population health prevention screening and education calls and follow ups. He says there has been an increase in mental health problems in veterans with noticeable increase in suicide rates since the pandemic started.
Dr. Larry Botts, CMO of Shawnee Mission/Advent Hospital, pointed out the long-term health consequences of COVID-19 are troubling, even for survivors. He says they include Myocarditis, arrythmias, and cardiomyopathy, Pulmonary fibrosis and embolism plus cognitive dysfunction and sensitivity to concussions.
David Wild, MD, VP of Performance Improvement at The University of Kansas Health System, said hospitals are not overwhelmed but they are stressed because the number of new patients each day is higher than ever. Fortunately, he says, that’s balanced by an equal number of discharges, keeping the numbers fairly even. He warns that we have a narrow window to keep this from being uncontrollable.
Dr. Kenny Southwick is with Cooperating School Districts of Greater Kansas City, which works with 31 area school districts. His message was this is not a school problem, but one that’s been thrust on schools. He says the two main jobs for districts are to keep everyone safe and to provide a high-quality education. Each district, he says, must decide for itself how to do that. He stressed that if we want to keep schools open, there needs to be a high level of community responsibility.
Joe Reardon is president & CEO of the Greater Kansas City Chamber of Commerce. He agrees getting kids back to school is vital, but it’s been tough on families and businesses. He says the economy has fallen 33%, the worst in history and the best thing we can do is to support businesses, wear masks, socially distance, keep our hands clean and avoid crowds.
Dr. Kimberly Beatty is chancellor at Metropolitan Community College. She says we must all understand the need to change behavior. The college has switched to online classes when possible, strict mask wearing, social distancing, badge and temperature checks on campus and a single point of entry for most buildings.
The panel also addressed viewer questions such as:
- Why are masks so important?
- How can there be consistency among various cities and counties in the area about mask wearing?
- Should employees who have COVID-19 have to be retested before returning to work?
- Can hospitals handle both COVID-19 and flu patients?
- How can we be sure of the cause of death when COVID-19 is involved?
Doctor Stites wrapped up by reminding us infection control is the key to stopping the virus.
Mayor Alvey concluded by saying wearing a mask is an act of love. He asks, who among us want to choose a family member or a customer that we are willing to expose to the virus?