COVID-19 Weekly Update

by | Apr 14, 2020 | Blog, Clinic & Community News, Health & Wellness

Before I go into anything else, please let us know if you are a current member at KCPDC and have been impacted financially by the COVID-19 pandemic. We want to help you and are able to do so through the generosity of our KCDPC members.  Just fill out and return this form — or just call us to talk about it (and we can help you through the technology).

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Clinic & clinical updates:

  • Though we are still here to care for you, as part of the stay-at-home order we may be working from home and condensing in-person visits (as needed) into a few hours a day; please call (913-730-0331) to confirm someone is at the office if you’re needing to physically swing by!
  • COVID-19 PCR (molecular) testing continues at KCDPC; it is $75 for the visit (and $50-70 billed by our lab vendor in several months).  Anyone interested in getting tested must fill out this questionnaire before we are able to schedule your testing visit.  
  • You have undoubtedly heard in the news about the “rapid” testing for COVID-19.  Unfortunately for us, this testing requires a machine that runs upwards of $10,000 — and is not something the manufacturer will actually sell us (we checked; it’s understandably prioritized for hot spots). We are working to get access to the IgG/IgM antibody testing kits to test if someone has had the virus, but we are likely 2-3 weeks out from offering this at this point.  And we have no idea what the price will be.
  • If someone does test positive for COVID-19 and they are well enough to stay at home, they’re to quarantine at home and follow some basic guidelines to prevent the spread to others.
    • Recommendations for when the general public can return to work after confirmed illness with COVID-19 are still shifting; the CDC has released guidance on how healthcare workers can be screened and cleared for return-to-work following illness. These guidelines are changing quickly, and we will help you through them if they end up applying to you.
    • What’s less clear is when to return to work if you have respiratory symptoms but have either tested negative for COVID-19 or have been unable to be tested.  The current recommendations are that you can return to essential jobs when:
      • You have had no fever for at least 72 hours (that is three full days of no fever without the use medicine that reduces fevers)
        AND
      • other symptoms have improved (for example, when your cough or shortness of breath have improved)
        AND
      • at least 7 days have passed since your symptoms first appeared
  • The basic facts about the virus remain unchanged: it is spread via droplet (and likely aerosolized in some situations), affects the elderly more frequently than the young (and affects people with conditions like high blood pressure, diabetes, heart disease, and lung disease far more severely than people who don’t have those conditions), and can be present — and transmitted — even in those who don’t have symptoms.
  • There is no valid, evidence-based cure or treatment for the illness other than supportive care; however, scientific trials are ongoing across the US and the world.
    • The medicines that have been in the news — Plaquenil, hydroxychloroquine, azithromycin, Z-packs, remedsivir — are all still in the clinical trial phase and we really don’t know if they will work.
  • Vaccine development is still in the works but also takes time to confirm that they actually work and do not cause harm; this is still a long ways out.
  • Seeing as we have no vaccine or clear treatment, the best plan is to protect yourself and prevent contracting the illness!  If you must go out, try your best to keep a 6-foot radius from others. Better yet — stay home as much as possible and take advantage of delivery services or curbside pickup.  Handwashing is essential, as is good rest, healthy eating, exercise, and all the usual best practices.  
    • This past week, the CDC update its recommendations regarding the use of face masks and is encouraging everyone to wear one (and even has instructions on how to make your own!)
    • We have had some donations to the clinic of cloth masks; if you want one, please let us know and we can arrange for a clean, no-touch handoff!

 

Local updates:

  • COVID-19 testing is slowly opening up in the community!  Though this is far from a complete list, here are testing sites we know about (in addition to ours):
    • Wyandotte County residents can get free testing MWF @ the health dept if they fill out the questionnaire and are screened to need testing (symptoms, >100 temp, old, comorbidities, etc.).  Alternatively, clinicians can directly refer Wyandotte County pts to be screened.​
    • The Sharon Lee Family Health Care Facility — 300-304 Southwest Boulevard, Kansas City, Kansas. Anyone is welcome and tests are free with a prescription from a doctor.
    • Saint Luke’s Health System  — has three COVID-19 drive-through testing sites, in Blue Springs, Shoal Creek and Mission Farms. The sites are by appointment and currently only available to St. Luke’s patients.
    • Missouri sites are listed here. 
  • Both Kansas and Missouri enforcing stay-at-home orders at this point.
  • What info direct from the source in real time? Keep up to date on both Kansas and Missouri statistics through their websites.

 

National political and economic updates:

  • Our favorite tracker (favorite tracker? Who says that? We live in a strange world.) for cases thus far is the dashboard compiled by Johns Hopkins University of Medicine.  
  • It’s hard to say exactly how many tests for COVID-19 have been done in the US.  The CDC is tracking the number of tests they have done + the number done by public health (= state) labs, however, these numbers do not appear to contain testing done at hospitals and large, commercial labs (which is actually where the majority of testing is occuring at this point).  They’re hoping to change this, though, so stay tuned!
  • Discussions are starting regarding how we’re all going to come out of this quarantine.  The big questions are:
      • How do we figure out who has already had COVID? And are they now immune?
      • How do we expand testing capacity?  And will it tell us the answer to the first questions?
      • The biggest question is: how do we avoid a second “bump” of cases?  How do we make sure the entire sacrifice we’ve all made this spring isn’t for naught?
    • This is important: nobody knows (with any sort of certainty) the answers to the questions above.  And answering each of them is going to require a huge amount of time, work, and/or money. We’re going to have to work together in ways that our current systems and structures aren’t used to doing.  We’re seeing states band together to start to solve these tough questions; this will be a slog.  Be prepared for a lot of unknowns, some tentative movements forward, and possible backslides and backpedaling. 

 

Some bright points to end on (because if we can’t find silver linings here we’re all going to lose our minds):

  • We absolutely cannot top John Krasinski’s Some Good News newscast that he’s been doing from his living room over the past few weeks.  If you haven’t caught it yet, check it out on YouTube!
  • On Sunday, as those who celebrate Easter spent the holiday connecting online, Andrea Bocelli provided a gorgeous concert form Milan’s cavernous and empty Duomo; it’s beautiful and a nice reprieve from the other chaos on social media.
  • Our friends at Thou Mayest Coffee surprised us with a generous donation of (ridiculously delicious) coffee this past week!  It’s hard to drink it with a mask on, but when we’re in the office and 6 feet away from one another, we’re enjoying it quite a bit (and cleaning hands a lot between sips)! 

Hope you all stay well.  Wash your hands. 🙂