The number of COVID patients being treated at The University of Kansas Health System continues to rise. 66 patients with the active virus are receiving care, up from 62 yesterday. 26 of them are in the ICU, up from 22 yesterday. 14 are on ventilators, down from 15 yesterday. 33 other patients are still hospitalized because of COVID but are out of the acute infection phase, up from 28 yesterday. That’s a total of 99 patients, a jump from 90 yesterday. HaysMed has 16 patients today up from 14 yesterday. Children’s Mercy Hospital reports 15 positive COVID patients, the same as yesterday.
On today’s Morning Medical Update, we looked at COVID testing. Dr. Rachael Liesman, director of Microbiology in Pathology joined us. She demonstrated how home test kits work, examined the reliability of the rapid tests, and explained how the hospital lab tests work with the Delta variant. She also looked at how to know when to get tested.
Dr. Liesman said there are a lot of new staff members in the lab to keep up with the demand, but they are still working overtime as more and more people are getting tested, not just for COVID. Full hospitals mean busy labs. They are just as surprised as physicians at the number of RSV cases they’re seeing this summer. It’s a disease that usually hits kids in the winter. They are also seeing an uptick in a virus called PIV 3, which is a cousin of the flu, and is dangerous for immunocompromised people. She explained how the lab tests for the Delta variant. She also discussed the reliability of the home COVID testing kits available in pharmacies and said while not as sensitive as the PCR, or nasal swab, they are a good starting point if you have symptoms or think you might have COVID. Starting at 15:30 on the video, she and host Jessica Lovell demonstrated how the home kits work and stressed the importance of reading all of the directions first. After each collected a sample from their nose and properly placed the swab into the test kit, they set the timer for 15 minutes to wait for the results. The results are revealed at 44:10. (Spoiler alert: Neither one has COVID!) While waiting, Dr. Liesman explained that it is possible but not common for someone to test positive with a home test and then negative with the PCR test a few days later because the virus might have cleared from the system in that time. For the most part, though, she says if you have COVID symptoms and test positive with a home kit, you should quarantine at home and let your doctor know. She also said you can schedule a test by calling the health system COVID hotline at 913-588-1600 or main call center at 913-588-1227. She stressed the importance of not going to the Emergency Department for a test, as they’re already slammed, and you will be considered a low priority with a long wait. She also says while saliva tests are good tests and an alternative to someone who doesn’t want the nasal swab up their nose, there’s no data showing them to be more accurate than the PCR test. She says if you even suspect you’re positive, get tested, and more importantly, get vaccinated.
Dana Hawkinson, MD, medical director of Infection Prevention and Control at The University of Kansas Health System, said many people still think Ivermectin, a dog and livestock heartworm medicine, will work against COVID. But he says it can be highly toxic with side effecters far worse than the vaccine. In fact, he says the Poison Control Center, located at the health system, gets calls about it all the time. He says there is officially no role in COVID treatment for Ivermectin. He’s hopeful now that the Pfizer vaccine has full FDA approval, we’ll see an uptick in vaccinations. He also wants to assure everyone that it’s safe to go to the dentist or eye doctor, as they all have taken the necessary infection control precautions. He stressed how masks in schools, and in the general public, are effective against not just Delta but all the variants. The other non-pharmaceutical interventions like social distancing, ventilation and hand hygiene are just as important. He also says it’s OK to get your COVID booster at the same time as your flu shot. That’s different from the original guidance which said wait two weeks, but experience and plenty of data in the past year shows it’s safe and effective.
Tuesday, August 23 at 8:00 a.m. is the next Open Mics With Dr. Stites. COVID is straining emergency departments, faced with too many patients and not enough room. Dr. Stites is joined by our Chief of Emergency Medicine as well as the medical director of Johnson County EMS to explain how hospitals are handling the high volume and what effect that could have on you.
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:
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.