A recent increase in the COVID-19 case numbers in Greater Kansas City, including Wyandotte County, can be stemmed by adhering to some basic principles including social distancing, hand-washing and wearing masks, according to doctors at the University of Kansas Health System.
Numbers of COVID-19 patients at KU Health System have started to increase again, after being in the teens, then rising to 24. At an earlier peak the numbers were in the 30s and 40s.
On Tuesday, the number of COVID-19 patients at KU Health System was up to 22, including eight in the intensive care unit and two on ventilators, according to Dr. Dana Hawkinson, medical director of infection prevention and control at KU Health System,
Dr. Hawkinson said he didn’t call it a surge, but an “expansion period” of the coronavirus. He said they are starting to see a younger age group now in the hospital. They don’t want to see the numbers increase to the point where hospitals are overwhelmed.
As cases are going up in the metro area, the state and the region, Dr. Steve Stites, chief medical officer of KU Health System, said, “We know what the playbook says for trying to maintain a healthy environment, which is shelter in place, wear your mask, wash your hands, don’t go out when you’re sick.”
He said it may come to a point where they have to discuss stopping elective surgeries again, if they have 40 to 60 COVID-19 patients, but at this time, he doesn’t think it is necessary, because the hospital has capacity.
Dr. Hawkinson said right now he is confident the hospital has enough supplies on hand, but that could change in a matter of a few days.
Doug Gaston, chief financial officer at the KU Health System, said the hospital is much better prepared than it was two or three months ago.
He said they thought they were over the hump and things were getting better, but now they just don’t know. It’s hard to plan financially for the uncertainty, he said. Most hospital CEOs are predicting it will take two to three years to get back to where they were financially, he said. He thinks KU Health System will recover sooner.
Gaston said KU Health System received $67 million in total federal grants during the COVID-19 crisis, and it helped, but the health system lost about $120 million in revenues from March to May.
“It didn’t even cover the revenue loss, but it did help,” he said. The funds were used on daily operating costs, testing and supplies, he said. The health system also made sure it kept its staff in place.
The health system also received a loan of about $165 million, an advance payment on Medicare funding, that it has to pay back starting in August.
He said there are plans in place for getting the health system back on track. They are looking at revenues and ways to control expenses, he said. They made a decision not to furlough staff, and that will help them get back to where they need to be, he said.
Gaston said he’s optimistic. He added that people do not need to be concerned, that people will return to seeking care at the hospital, and telemedicine also is a great tool for people to use at this time.
Dr. Stites said people in the community need to find activities where they can go out and be around others safely.
“You can do it safely,” he said.
Driveway dinners where people are far apart are great, he said. But sitting around a crowded table or at a crowded bar may not be the best choice right now, “unless you want to get coronavirus,” Dr. Stites said. “That’s how you get it.”
Dr. Hawkinson said there are new studies on the coronavirus in the air that have shown that particles may be able to stay in the air longer than originally thought.
The answer is to keep a mask on, he said, as it makes it safer in a room where other people also have masks on.
Dr. Stites said he was optimistic about getting to January, when it is possible that a vaccine might become available. “We’re halfway there,” he said. The way to get there is to continue good health practices, he said.
Wyandotte County reported 2,635 total cumulative COVID-19 cases at 1 p.m. Tuesday. It was an increase of 49 cases since Monday. The number of total deaths, 85, remained the same as Monday.
Kansas on Monday reported an increase of 892 cases between Friday and Monday morning, according to the Kansas Department of Health and Environment website.
COVID-19 cases have continued to increase nationwide, reported at 2.96 million cases in the United States and 130,902 deaths in the nation, according to the Johns Hopkins COVID-19 website.
Wyandotte County currently is under the governor’s mandatory mask order and also is in Phase 3 of the state’s Ad Astra reopening plan.
The Unified Government Health Department on Tuesday announced new hours for its free clinic at the Health Department parking lot at 6th and Ann Avenue in Kansas City, Kansas. It will be open from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday through Friday. More information about testing is at https://wyandotte-county-covid-19-hub-unifiedgov.hub.arcgis.com/pages/what-to-do-if-you-think-you-have-covid-19.
The KU doctors’ news conference, with more information about these topics, is online at https://www.facebook.com/kuhospital/videos/469801077219394.
The governor’s executive order on masks is at https://governor.kansas.gov/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/20200702093130003.pdf.
The governor’s news release on the mask order is at https://governor.kansas.gov/governor-laura-kelly-signs-executive-order-mandating-masks-in-public-spaces/.
The Wyandotte County mask order is at https://www.wycokck.org/WycoKCK/media/Health-Department/Documents/Communicable%20Disease/COVID19/06272020LocalHealthOfficerOrderRegardingMasks.pdf.
A news release on the Wyandotte County mask order is at https://www.wycokck.org/WycoKCK/media/Health-Department/Documents/Communicable%20Disease/COVID19/06272020PressReleaseLHORequiresPublicToWearMasks.pdf.
Wyandotte County now has posted an application for nonprofits, government agencies, school districts and businesses in Wyandotte County that want to apply for CARES Act funding. The web address is https://us.openforms.com/Form/6273fe80-8bba-4c18-b4e7-e551096d8a83.
For information on how to make an easy no-sew mask, visit https://wyandotteonline.com/how-to-make-a-no-sew-cloth-mask/.
For more information about COVID-19 testing, including other sites, visit https://wyandotte-county-covid-19-hub-unifiedgov.hub.arcgis.com/pages/what-to-do-if-you-think-you-have-covid-19. Residents also may call 3-1-1 for more information about testing.
The state’s COVID-19 test page is at https://www.coronavirus.kdheks.gov/280/COVID-19-Testing.
Residents may visit the UG COVID-19 website at https://alpha.wycokck.org/Coronavirus-COVID-19-Information or call 311 for more information.
Wyandotte County is currently under Phase 3. See covid.ks.gov.
The state plan’s frequently asked questions page is at https://covid.ks.gov/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/Reopening-FAQ_5.19.2020_Final.pdf.
The CDC’s COVID-19 web page is at https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-nCoV/index.html.