Hospital officials say it’s time to get back to basics as cases surge

By CALLAN PUGH 

City editor 

As of Monday morning, Wyandot County saw 212 active coronavirus cases, according to a projected count from Wyandot County Public Health. With the recent and ongoing jump in cases in the county, Wyandot Memorial Hospital officials are urging the public to return to some of the safety measures put in place at the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic.

“If you wear a mask, you’re going to protect the wearer and you’re going to protect those around you,” WMH Director of Infection Prevention Val Schalk said. “We have to get back to basics. We have to wear masks, social distance, get your vaccine and make sure that you have good ventilation.”

In-patient medical director Jacob Conklin said the hospital is busy and seeing COVID.

“We’re admitting patients frequently with COVID,” Conklin said. “We’re having patients that are anywhere from minimally ill, that require a very limited stay in the hospital, to critically ill that either require intubation or mechanical ventilation. This is further challenged by the fact that there are so many patients that are critically ill, that our ability to transfer patients to tertiary care centers is very limited … because ICU beds are full in the cities.”

“Not only as a county, but as people in the state of Ohio, we need to do everything we can to prevent people from getting to that point where they’re critically ill. Because the more there are, the more the health care system is unable to cope with those patients.”

The basics

Infection Prevention Medical Director Dr. Chevonne Vent said masks are recommended to be used by all people, regardless of vaccination status when indoors or when outdoors but unable to maintain a social distance because of the high transmission rate in the community.

Conklin strongly encouraged vaccination, noting that the “great majority” of the patients being seen in the hospital are almost universally unvaccinated in his experience.

“In my last two months [at WMH], I’ve had one vaccinated patient hospitalized and they were hospitalized for a day,” Conklin shared. “Everybody else I’ve seen — at least when I’m working — has been unvaccinated that’s been hospitalized for COVID.

“… I should also mention too that I’ve had no patients hospitalized for side effects from COVID vaccination. In general [the vaccine is very well tolerated with] minor, self-limited symptoms.”

Wyandot Memorial Hospital has only taken in that one vaccinated patient to date, Schalk said. While there is currently a vaccinated patient hospitalized for COVID-19, Wyandot County Public Health confirmed that this patient is hospitalized at a facility outside of Wyandot County.

Immunity through vaccination

The vaccine is the safest way to acquire immunity to COVID-19, Schalk said.

Conklin agreed that, “Given the lack of long-term risks with the vaccine, even if somebody’s had COVID, I still think it’s a good idea that they get vaccinated to just boost that immunity further.”

Vent has seen patients who have had the virus more than once, with one such patient getting a mild case the first time and then requiring hospitalization the second time they fell ill.

The hospital currently is offering both Moderna and Pfizer vaccines in walk-in clinics from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday for ages 12 and older at the surgical entrance of the hospital. Those needing different times may call to set up hours that work.

“We’ll stay later, come in early — we’ll make it work for them,” Schalk said.

Conklin said with debates about the topic, the best he can offer is his experience seeing patients who are critically ill who are “almost universally” unvaccinated.

“To me that says something,” Conklin said.

Schalk said with current hospitalizations being mostly unvaccinated individuals, it appears, “the vaccines do prevent severe disease, hospitalization.”

“They’re working as intended,” she said.

Hospitalizations

Conklin said while the hospital is busier than baseline with critically ill patients at this time, the staff at WMH are dedicated to ensuring that critically ill patients in the community will have access on the in-patient side. Additionally, staff and nursing are implementing educational programs to talk about specialized treatments that are utilized in COVID. These have included prone positioning and Vapotherm, which Conklin explained is humidified high-flow oxygen.

(Continued on page 2)

(Continued from page 1)

“We’re doing our best to keep up with advances as they come and implementing those to the benefit of the community,” Conklin said. “We see that with the degree of critical care beds full at tertiary centers, that if that trend continues, much of the critical care will need to be accomplished in house — and we’re preparing ourselves for that.

“Our pharmacy’s also staying up to date on the newest therapies available and recommended.”

Schalk said the hospital is networked with the central region and regional partners to make sure WMH can talk to partners to see which beds are availability and to have up-to-date information.

Hospitalizations for COVID typically occur because a patient has an oxygen level that requires them to be on supplemental oxygen, Conklin said.

 “That’s really the criteria that has people being hospitalized,” Conklin explained. “Rarely, it will be for dehydration or something like that. Comparing the patients that have been hospitalized recently, versus last December — I can say that we’ve seen more gastrointestinal symptoms with this current spike in COVID … though still the great majority have upper respiratory symptoms.”

Conklin noted that age and pre-existing conditions are not always a factor in who is getting critically ill.

“There’s a wide variety of ages and it certainly is not limited to the elderly population to be critically ill — just about anybody can be,” Conklin said. “Pre-existing conditions like asthma, diabetes, underlying heart disease do increase the risk of critical illness, but it is not exclusive to that population. We have seen otherwise healthy people become critically ill from this virus.”

He noted the bulk of the patients he’s been seeing that are critically ill and require mechanical ventilation are between the ages of 55 and 70.

“It’s not the 94-year-old patient who just wants to keep fighting, it’s the 55- to 70-year-old patient,” Conklin said. “It’s not the nursing homes or the group homes anymore, it’s patients from home.”

Vent also noted that the Ohio Children’s Hospital Association has released a joint statement saying that hospitals are seeing more children ill with the delta variant than have ever been seen during this pandemic. RSV also is at levels like peak winter levels already and more kids also are coming into the hospitals with mental and behavioral health issues — all of which is threatening the capacity of the pediatric safety net in ways not experienced previously, the statement said.

“Even though kids are still much less likely to get severely ill — they still can,” Vent said.

The statement also urged Ohioans to get vaccinated when eligible, wear a mask particularly during school and at large gatherings and to adhere to proven safe practices of physical distancing and hand washing.

Long haulers

Vent spoke about some of the patients she has seen that are considered “long haulers” and are still having issues after getting the virus early in 2020. She agreed it’s possible that some people getting ill now could be dealing with the effects a year from now.

“Some will [have lasting effects],” Vent said. “A lot of people will fully recover. A couple people that I have were otherwise completely healthy before [contracting] COVID [and are still having complications].” 

Symptoms of COVID, seeking care

WMH Director of Infection Prevention Val Schalk said locally patients have been reporting ear pain, sinus congestion, headache and gastro-intestinal issues such as diarrhea. While these symptoms may be common for other illnesses or allergies, they may indicate COVID, Schalk said.

“You can have just GI symptoms,” Schalk said. “And it’s possible not to have a fever. … In the case of a pandemic, nothing’s routine.”

For those who feel they might be sick should first call their doctors, Infection Prevention Medical Director Dr. Chevonne Vent said. Primary care providers are all testing and caring for patients. Those who do not have a primary care provider should contact Urgent Care or, if severely ill, visit the emergency room for care.

“We very well prepared here locally,” Schalk said. “We have what we need to take care of patients and we are prepared to take care of patients.”

Those with questions about COVID are encouraged to call their doctor or WMH’s COVID line at 419-294-4991 ext. 2684.