Morning Medical Update Friday 11-12-21

More steady COVID patient numbers at The University of Kansas Health System today. 16 with the active virus are being treated, the same as yesterday. None of them are vaccinated. Seven patients are in the ICU, up from six yesterday. One is on a ventilator, the same as yesterday. 22 other patients are still hospitalized because of COVID but are out of the acute infection phase, up from 21 yesterday. That’s a total of 38 patients, up from 37 yesterday. HaysMed reports five active COVID patients and seven in the recovery phase.

On today’s Morning Medical Update, it's follow up Friday and we answered some of those missed questions from the week. We also heard from Dr. Kenny Southwick, executive director of Cooperative School Districts of Greater Kansas City, who advises schools on kids, masking and COVID. We know parents have many questions on what to do now that their own child is vaccinated but others are not, and masking mandates are being lifted in many districts.

Dr. Southwick advises 32 districts around the region. He thinks schools will have a role in vaccines for kids now that they’re available for those 5 to 11, but each district will follow the guidance of their health department. He worries vaccination rates in that group will be low for a while and says there’s a lot of educating and convincing that needs to happen to get students vaccinated. It doesn’t help, he says, that several districts are now making masks optional for older students and admits there are strong feelings on both sides of that issue. He also worries about supply chain problems caused by the pandemic, which are putting a strain on many schools’ ability to feed their students. The pandemic is also causing staff problems, as many are getting burned out and leaving. He calls this a critical time with indoor activities increasing while mask usage is decreasing.

Here are the media and community questions in the order the panel addressed them, followed by the short answer. The time code for the question is in parentheses. See the video for their full answers and comments.

(2:00) Have you heard of “shot detox?” What can you tell us about it? It’s apparently an effort by some who get the vaccine to comply with a mandate, then try to counteract the effects of the vaccine with a borax “detox bath.” There’s absolutely no science that supports this, and bathing in a cleaning chemical is dangerous.
(3:50) What do you think of Denver’s state of emergency to allow anyone over 18 to get the booster? Should we do that here? That would be hard to police. Also, those under 65 still have excellent protection. The real concern is for those who have not had any shot. Ultimately, anyone can get a booster anytime.
(24:20) Thinking back to March of 2020, if we had known then what we know now about COVID, do you think schools could have remained open or at least reopened sooner? No. The hope then was schools would be back to normal after spring break. But the lack of vaccines for school kids and the onslaught of Delta changed that.
(25:58) School nurses were praised for their work last year. How are they pivoting now with the latest vaccine approval for kids 5 to 11? Things have not changed. We are not back where we need to be. We look forward to the day when our cases are low enough and our vaccinations are high enough to get back to normal.
(27:50) As the temperatures get colder in Kansas, what risks are there for COVID and the potential spike in cases? It’s a big concern. We don’t always know who around us is vaccinated now that we’re gathering more and more indoors.
(29:45) Do the doctors have any suggestions on how to convince a friend who still believes ivermectin will treat COVID? It’s difficult when you don’t understand where that friend is getting their information, but flawed sources are a problem. There is no scientific proof that ivermectin works against COVID. In fact, just this week, another journal article on this was retracted because of false and inaccurate information.
(31:35) There’s a physicians group coming to Kansas City that is opposed to vaccinating children and they say healthy, unvaccinated children are critical for achieving herd immunity. What do you think? Steer clear of those doctors. Vaccines are safe for kids. Who wants their child to be part of the unvaccinated “herd” and risk severe disease and hospitalization, not to mention missing school and other activities?
(35:50) Are there efforts underway to combine COVID vaccines with routine childhood vaccines like MMR? There is some talk about combining them, but it’s perfectly safe to get each shot separately at the same visit.
(36:55) Is the flu starting go around? It’s still very low in the U.S. but it looks like it’s creeping up a little bit.
(37:55) Do you see school boards mandating the vaccine? We are probably a long way from that. Much will depend on what health departments require, as they currently mandate other vaccines such as for measles and mumps.
(39:45) If all schools lift the mask mandates, won’t children without the vaccine be at higher risk of getting COVID vs. children who have had the vaccine? Yes, they are at higher risk, not just in schools but anywhere in the community.
(40:55) If you get a positive PCR (nasal swab) test, and 2 days later get a negative PCR test, which one is correct if you're asymptomatic? The PCR tests are very sensitive. There’s no need to take a second one.
(41:45) Can you comment on the decision to make masks optional for those 12 to 18? Schools take direction from their health departments but are under pressure from their boards and parents. The data shows masks work to keep COVID from spreading in schools.
(43:40) Should someone who is vaccinated then got COVID still receive the booster? Yes, there is no minimum time frame between infection and getting vaccinated, or in this case getting a booster.

Monday, November 15 at 8:00 a.m. is the next Morning Medical Update. It’s a big day for eight-year-old Russell, who is getting vaccinated live on our show. You’ll find out why he’s been waiting for this day for so long. We'll also take a closer look at vaccination rates and efforts in Wyandotte county and discuss the latest predictions as we head towards the winter months.

NOTE: Journalists should rejoin the Morning Medical Update at 8am as doctors are growing too busy again for individual interview requests. Please bring questions or send to medicalnewsnetwork@kumc.edu until further notice. Thanks for all you do and helping to keep the community safe with your reporting.

ATTENTION: media procedure for calling in:

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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.

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(2:00) Have you heard of “shot detox?” What can you tell us about it? It’s apparently an effort by some who get the vaccine to comply with a mandate, then try to counteract the effects of the vaccine with a borax “detox bath.” There’s absolutely no science that supports this, and bathing in a cleaning chemical is dangerous.
(3:50) What do you think of Denver’s state of emergency to allow anyone over 18 to get the booster? Should we do that here? That would be hard to police. Also, those under 65 still have excellent protection. The real concern is for those who have not had any shot. Ultimately, anyone can get a booster anytime.
(24:20) Thinking back to March of 2020, if we had known then what we know now about COVID, do you think schools could have remained open or at least reopened sooner? No. The hope then was schools would be back to normal after spring break. But the lack of vaccines for school kids and the onslaught of Delta changed that.
(25:58) School nurses were praised for their work last year. How are they pivoting now with the latest vaccine approval for kids 5 to 11? Things have not changed. We are not back where we need to be. We look forward to the day when our cases are low enough and our vaccinations are high enough to get back to normal.
(27:50) As the temperatures get colder in Kansas, what risks are there for COVID and the potential spike in cases? It’s a big concern. We don’t always know who around us is vaccinated now that we’re gathering more and more indoors.
(29:45) Do the doctors have any suggestions on how to convince a friend who still believes ivermectin will treat COVID? It’s difficult when you don’t understand where that friend is getting their information, but flawed sources are a problem. There is no scientific proof that ivermectin works against COVID. In fact, just this week, another journal article on this was retracted because of false and inaccurate information.
(31:35) There’s a physicians group coming to Kansas City that is opposed to vaccinating children and they say healthy, unvaccinated children are critical for achieving herd immunity. What do you think? Steer clear of those doctors. Vaccines are safe for kids. Who wants their child to be part of the unvaccinated “herd” and risk severe disease and hospitalization, not to mention missing school and other activities?
(35:50) Are there efforts underway to combine COVID vaccines with routine childhood vaccines like MMR? There is some talk about combining them, but it’s perfectly safe to get each shot separately at the same visit.
(36:55) Is the flu starting go around? It’s still very low in the U.S. but it looks like it’s creeping up a little bit.
(37:55) Do you see school boards mandating the vaccine? We are probably a long way from that. Much will depend on what health departments require, as they currently mandate other vaccines such as for measles and mumps.
(39:45) If all schools lift the mask mandates, won’t children without the vaccine be at higher risk of getting COVID vs. children who have had the vaccine? Yes, they are at higher risk, not just in schools but anywhere in the community.
(40:55) If you get a positive PCR (nasal swab) test, and 2 days later get a negative PCR test, which one is correct if you're asymptomatic? The PCR tests are very sensitive. There’s no need to take a second one.
(41:45) Can you comment on the decision to make masks optional for those 12 to 18? Schools take direction from their health departments but are under pressure from their boards and parents. The data shows masks work to keep COVID from spreading in schools.
(43:40) Should someone who is vaccinated then got COVID still receive the booster? Yes, there is no minimum time frame between infection and getting vaccinated, or in this case getting a booster.