Less bed space has been available for kids in need of psychiatric care because of COVID-19, according to Marillac officials.
The facility has had to reduce available beds from 84 to 42, because of COVID-19 restrictions, and as a result as many as 300 kids a month had to receive psychiatric care at regular hospitals instead of Marillac, according to Dr. Mitchell Douglass, medical director of the Marillac campus.
At the same time, the pandemic has resulted in an increase in depression and suicide in adolescents, he said. He believes it is a significant health care and psychiatric crisis.
Dr. Douglass described changes that he has seen, including children whose sleep cycles have been disrupted, whose social life has been disrupted, who are not exercising and who are not getting outside enough to get vitamin D. He also sees children who need help but are trying to disguise it, and need to talk about their problems.
He advised anyone who thinks his child is in danger of harming himself or herself to call 911.
Dr. Douglass offered these tips for parents – keep kids in a routine, with the same eating and sleeping schedules, exercise and socializing with friends, including in-person socializing.
He said parents should get kids vaccinated as soon as it is possible, and by fall school can start to be like normal again.
According to Dr. Danielle Johnson, a psychologist, most children want to go back to school, especially those in high school.
She also had ideas on how to communicate with children, and advised parents to talk with the children each day, asking them if they’re OK. This week, parents should focus on a good finish to school, and then a fun summer and not worry about August yet.
According to Dr. David Wild, vice president of performance improvement, 22.4 percent of new COVID-19 infections in the United States are from children currently. That compares to three percent in November. He said he expected the Pfizer vaccine for children ages 12 to 16 could be approved for emergency use authorization any day.
Dr. Wild said it is still important to wear a mask, even if people are fully vaccinated. All of the things they’re doing, including vaccinations, wearing a mask and distancing, are having an effect in keeping yourself, family and the community safe. He asked people to continue their efforts.
Free vaccinations available Friday
Free walk-in vaccinations will be available for everyone over age 16 Friday, May 7, at three Unified Government Health Department locations: from 9 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. at the Kansas National Guard Armory, 100 S. 20th St., (near 18th and Ridge), Kansas City, Kansas; from 9 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. at the former Kmart, 7836 State Ave., Kansas City, Kansas; and from 9 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. at the former Best Buy, 10500 Parallel Parkway, Kansas City, Kansas.
The schedule of vaccinations will be changing next week. To see the new schedule and more information about vaccinations, visit WycoVaccines.org or https://www.facebook.com/UGHealthDept.
The Health Department will be doing more mobile vaccinations, and people may request vaccines to be given at different sites in the community by going to WycoVaccines.org and clicking on “mobile vaccine request.” People also may request a ride to vaccination sites on the same page.
UG Health Department vaccinations are now open to people from other counties and states. People may walk in for vaccinations or can schedule them.
Those who wish to schedule an appointment may use the Health Department’s self-scheduling tool at WycoVaccines.org and click on a blue button that says, “Click here to schedule an appointment online.” The page is available in Spanish by clicking at the top of the page. Walk-in appointments also are welcome.
Those who don’t have an internet connection may call 3-1-1 or 913-573-5311 for assistance in scheduling their vaccination appointment time and date.
To see more information about Health Department vaccinations and next week’s schedule, visit WycoVaccines.org.
Other sites available for vaccination
Vaccinations at KU Health System are open to the public. Current patients may use MyChart to make an appointment. Others may call 913-588-1227 or visit kansashealthsystem.com/vaccine to make an appointment to get vaccinated.
There are also pharmacies giving free COVID-19 vaccinations in Wyandotte County by appointment, when available. These include Price Chopper and Hen House pharmacy at 76th and State Avenue, and 81st and State Avenue (see https://www.ballsfoodspharmacy.com/), and Medicine Shoppe pharmacy at 65th and Parallel by appointment when available (see https://www.facebook.com/The-Medicine-Shoppe-Kansas-City-281548241870522).
CVS has announced walk-in appointments for COVID-19 vaccine at some of its stores. Those interested in getting a vaccination at a CVS pharmacy are asked to visit a CVS website in order to make sure there is vaccine available. The website is at www.cvs.com/.
Other pharmacies and sites giving vaccines are listed at www.vaccines.gov.
Case numbers reported
KU Health System reported lower numbers of COVID-19 patients on Thursday morning. There were 20 active COVID-19 patients on Thursday morning, a decrease of two, according to Dr. Hawkinson. Seven of these were in the intensive care unit, no change from Wednesday. Seven patients were on ventilators, an increase of two. There were another nine COVID-19 patients who were still in the hospital but are no longer in the acute phase, a derease of one from Wednesday. There was a total of 29 patients, a decrease of three from Wednesday.
Wyandotte County reported an increase of 24 COVID-19 cases on Thursday, May 6, for a cumulative 18,539 cases, according to the Unified Government Health Department’s COVID-19 webpage. There was a cumulative total of 291 deaths reported, no change from Wednesday.
The Mid-America Regional Council’s COVID-19 dashboard reported 171,419 cumulative COVID-19 cases on Thursday, an increase of 347 since Wednesday. The daily average of new hospitalizations was 63.
KDHE reported 310,115 cumulative COVID-19 cases in Kansas on Wednesday, May 5, an increase of 470 cases since Monday, May 3. There were a total cumulative 4,999 deaths reported statewide, an increase of 14.
KDHE reported that Johnson County had 58,134 cumulative cases on Wednesday, an increase of 102 cases since Monday. Leavenworth County had 7,212 cumulative cases, an increase of 12 cases since Monday. Sedgwick County (the Wichita area) reported 56,361 cumulative cases on Wednesday, an increase of 103 cases since Monday
The Johns Hopkins University COVID-19 dashboard on Thursday night reported 32,604,495 cumulative COVID-19 cases in the United States, with 580,054 total deaths reported nationwide. There were 44,510 new cases nationwide and 776 new deaths nationwide.
States with the highest number of new cases were Florida, 4,394; Michigan, 3,047; New Jersey, 2,528; Texas, 2,428; and Illinois, 2,419.
Countries with the highest number of new cases were India, 412,431; Brazil, 73,295; U.S., 44,510; Turkey, 26,476; and France, 26,004, according to the Johns Hopkins information.
Free testing available Friday
One of the sites for free COVID-19 testing is open beginning at 8 a.m. Friday, May 7, at Lowe’s at 6920 State Ave., Kansas City, Kansas. The tests are through WellHealth. Appointments are required. For more information, to see other testing sites and to make an appointment, visit https://www.gogettested.com/kansas.
Free COVID-19 testing will be available at UG Health Department testing sites. For information about UG Health Department COVID-19 testing sites and hours, visit https://wyandotte-county-covid-19-hub-unifiedgov.hub.arcgis.com/pages/what-to-do-if-you-think-you-have-covid-19. To see if there is any change to the schedule, visit https://www.facebook.com/UGHealthDept. Appointments are not needed.
The Health Department’s general contact page is at https://www.wycokck.org/Health/Contact.aspx. Their Facebook page is at https://www.facebook.com/UGHealthDept.
Testing sites are at https://wyandotte-county-covid-19-hub-unifiedgov.hub.arcgis.com/pages/what-to-do-if-you-think-you-have-covid-19. There are more test sites listed on this page.
Saliva testing is now offered at the UG Health Department. For more information, visit https://alpha.wycokck.org/files/assets/public/health/documents/covid/02042021-ugphd-saliva-testing-available.pdf.
The KU doctors’ news conference is at https://www.facebook.com/kuhospital/videos/1839629186207171.
The University of Kansas Health System COVID-19 update page is at https://www.facebook.com/kuhospital/videos/292961702392386.
A weekly vaccine report for the state of Kansas is at
https://www.kansasvaccine.gov/DocumentCenter/View/123/Vaccine-Historical-Document-22521?bidId=.
Information about the new mask ordinance passed April 29, which loosened restrictions in Wyandotte County, is online at https://alpha.wycokck.org/files/assets/public/health/documents/covid/updatedwycomaskorder04302021.pdf.
The KDHE’s COVID-19 webpage is at https://www.coronavirus.kdheks.gov/.
The KC Region COVID-19 Hub dashboard is at https://marc2.org/covidhub/.
The Wyandotte County page on the Johns Hopkins COVID-19 website is at https://bao.arcgis.com/covid-19/jhu/county/20209.html.
The Johns Hopkins Data in Motion, a presentation on critical COVID-19 data in the past 24 hours, is at https://coronavirus.jhu.edu/covid-19-daily-video.