-One major problem we are dealing with is the high number of patients coming to the ER because "they need to be tested for Corona", or "my doctor sent me to the ER to be tested". The media/government has given the false claim that we can test everyone. This is false. There are many problems with testing everyone for Covid19. First, we don't have the supplies. To be honest I think we have enough actual "tests" to do it, but with every test comes masks/gloves/face shields/N95 mask/personal protective equipment. Our nurses need to be fully protected to do the test. And wasting those resources on a patient who has a mild cough and low grade fever is a waste to our system.
-Second, the COVID-19 nasopharyngeal swab test itself is not that accurate. The test is only accurate about 70% of the time. So given this information, even if I test a patient, and their test is negative, I am still instructing that patient to quarantine themselves for 14 days, because a negative result is wrong 30% of the time if the patient really has it. If you are not "sick", ie don't need to be admitted to the hospital, the management does not change. Regardless if I test a patient or not, I am quarantining you and recent contacts for 14 days based on concerning symptoms. The only argument that could be made for testing everyone is data collection, and tbh at the ground level, dealing with patients on a face-to-face basis, I don't care about that. PEOPLE NEED TO STOP COMING TO THE HOSPITAL IF THEY HAVE MILD SYMPTOMS. They need to self-quarantine for 14 days and only come to the ER if they can't breathe or are too weak to walk. This message cannot be expressed enough. A positive test result may give an individual peace of mind, but we need to think about the greater good here. Everyone needs a war time mentality.
-Every time we test someone who doesn't really need it, we are putting a nurse at risk who has to administer the test.
-One of the few benefits we have seen is a low number of patients coming to the ER for unreasonable complaints (aka "my right foot has been hurting for 7 years, please fix this today). People are afraid to go the hospital, which they should be. I am too.
-Our resources are being diminished quickly. The nationwide shortage is putting the entire ER/ICU medical staff at a huge risk when dealing with these patients. We are trying to encourage any dentist/doctor's office whom has closed/painters/oil miners, to donate any N95 masks, gloves, basic masks, sanitary wipes to their local ERs and ICUs. I ask everyone reading this, to do the same thing too.
-Social distancing, to be honest I don't know if this thing will resolve until it is a nationwide lock down, minus going out for basic needs.
-The incubation period (time it takes for you to develop symptoms after being exposed), is about 4 days. So, if people are properly quarantining themselves for at least 4 days, and have no symptoms, they can feel pretty confident they won't get it. But every time they step out into a public area, that clock resets back to zero.
-Not gonna lie, I downplayed this. I was wrong. I thought it was gonna be slightly worse than our flu season. **** got real when I started seeing people in their 40s with no medical problems have to get intubated and placed on ventilators because of respiratory failure. Every day I am more and more afraid to go to work. I used to pride myself on being the coolest/calmest guy in the room, no matter what came through the door: heart attacks/strokes/gunshot wounds/guy who gets cut in half after getting run over by a train/cardiac arrest. None of that got my pulse above 80, but COVID scares the **** out of me.
-People who are actually sick enough to be admitted to the hospital come in about 4/5 days after symptoms begin, (8/9 days after exposure). Major cities in Texas started their quarantine on around March 17. If we are going to see real results it probably won't start until March 25-27ish. The "flattening the curve" is real. I hope we can do it, but time will tell.to be honest I think this is gonna take a lot more.
-Second, the COVID-19 nasopharyngeal swab test itself is not that accurate. The test is only accurate about 70% of the time. So given this information, even if I test a patient, and their test is negative, I am still instructing that patient to quarantine themselves for 14 days, because a negative result is wrong 30% of the time if the patient really has it. If you are not "sick", ie don't need to be admitted to the hospital, the management does not change. Regardless if I test a patient or not, I am quarantining you and recent contacts for 14 days based on concerning symptoms. The only argument that could be made for testing everyone is data collection, and tbh at the ground level, dealing with patients on a face-to-face basis, I don't care about that. PEOPLE NEED TO STOP COMING TO THE HOSPITAL IF THEY HAVE MILD SYMPTOMS. They need to self-quarantine for 14 days and only come to the ER if they can't breathe or are too weak to walk. This message cannot be expressed enough. A positive test result may give an individual peace of mind, but we need to think about the greater good here. Everyone needs a war time mentality.
-Every time we test someone who doesn't really need it, we are putting a nurse at risk who has to administer the test.
-One of the few benefits we have seen is a low number of patients coming to the ER for unreasonable complaints (aka "my right foot has been hurting for 7 years, please fix this today). People are afraid to go the hospital, which they should be. I am too.
-Our resources are being diminished quickly. The nationwide shortage is putting the entire ER/ICU medical staff at a huge risk when dealing with these patients. We are trying to encourage any dentist/doctor's office whom has closed/painters/oil miners, to donate any N95 masks, gloves, basic masks, sanitary wipes to their local ERs and ICUs. I ask everyone reading this, to do the same thing too.
-Social distancing, to be honest I don't know if this thing will resolve until it is a nationwide lock down, minus going out for basic needs.
-The incubation period (time it takes for you to develop symptoms after being exposed), is about 4 days. So, if people are properly quarantining themselves for at least 4 days, and have no symptoms, they can feel pretty confident they won't get it. But every time they step out into a public area, that clock resets back to zero.
-Not gonna lie, I downplayed this. I was wrong. I thought it was gonna be slightly worse than our flu season. **** got real when I started seeing people in their 40s with no medical problems have to get intubated and placed on ventilators because of respiratory failure. Every day I am more and more afraid to go to work. I used to pride myself on being the coolest/calmest guy in the room, no matter what came through the door: heart attacks/strokes/gunshot wounds/guy who gets cut in half after getting run over by a train/cardiac arrest. None of that got my pulse above 80, but COVID scares the **** out of me.
-People who are actually sick enough to be admitted to the hospital come in about 4/5 days after symptoms begin, (8/9 days after exposure). Major cities in Texas started their quarantine on around March 17. If we are going to see real results it probably won't start until March 25-27ish. The "flattening the curve" is real. I hope we can do it, but time will tell.to be honest I think this is gonna take a lot more.
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