Covid and Hospitals: How are things now?

[CrunchRN]

Just curious. Here in DFW I see hospitalizations are rising to 14%. How are things in the hospitals? Are things relatively normal? No more furloughs?

Please share. I am not in acute care, but I am of course very interested in the effects on acute care staff.

[SansNom]

We had a big drop in numbers around the end of January/beginning of February and then a small rise around the beginning of March and ever since things have been at a kind of equilibrium, fluctuating slightly up and down but no significant changes. Most staff are vaccinated and often giving reports and hanging around breakrooms with no masks. Covid rooms feel like any other isolation room now, some people not even gowning up for them. One hospital I float through (I work in 3) even has some covid patients mixed with non-covid. I'm even seeing staff (doctors and nurses alike) going in covid rooms with just a surgical mask on occasionally.

Definitely feels like a new norm at this point.

[nursej22, MSN, RN]

1 hour ago, CrunchRN said:

Muno and Nursej22 - what area of the US are you in?

Pacific Northwest

 

[CrunchRN, ADN, RN]

My old stomping grounds (PNW). I wonder why the increase now?

Interesting SansNom. I guess at some point it does have to become normalized.

Things seem so almost normal here in DFW these days that  I forget that it has been very different in other places since the start. and continues that way. I think when you are not working remotely (I am not) it makes things seem normal much more quickly.

 

[NurseBlaq]

People think because they are vaccinated they are free to roam without masks or precautions when there's evidence of fully vaccinated people catching covid again. Then you have some who blame the unvaccinated instead of just acknowledging the vaccines aren't a cure or the fact that there was an already unknown amount of mutations floating around. Or what about the people who can't get vaccinated? The point is we still don't know the true effectiveness of the vaccines so people shouldn't be acting as if everything has improved nor is a hoax, vaccinated or not. That's just my $0.02.

Example: https://www.nbcchicago.com/news/coronavirus/after-fully-vaccinated-father-dies-of-covid-19-family-hopes-story-raises-awareness/2500933/

[gere7404, BSN, RN]

Seeing a new wave of a different strain, more younger people affected, but not much respiratory involvement. Horrible body aches, n/v/d. A lot of people coming into the ER, but like previous waves, not many actually get admitted. We’ve got like 15 cases admitted in our system (3 hospitals).

I found out natural acquired antibodies last about six months. I got a two week vacation a couple weeks ago after I got covid a second time. 

[JVBT, ASN]

15 minutes ago, gere7404 said:

I found out natural acquired antibodies last about six months. I got a two week vacation a couple weeks ago after I got covid a second time. 

Not that I'm any kind of expert, but what I'm hearing is that naturally acquired immunity lasts up to the present date. In other words, when they started measuring antibodies, if they were 6 months out from infection, the result was that it lasted 6 months. If the person was 8 months out from infection, the result was immunity lasting 8 months, and so on.

An interesting study recently been published, called Longitudinal analysis shows durable and broad immune memory after SARS-CoV-2 infection with persisting antibody responses and memory B and T cells. Very interesting!

Since this is a thread asking for how things are now - I'm feeling good at my facility, sensing the beginning of the end, though there are still (ahem) unvaccinated personnel who take off their masks walking through hallways. That will never stop rankling, I suppose. Sigh.

[Wuzzie]

Current Sitch:

Admitted Covid positives in the 30's-40's (system wide)

Admitted Suspected Covids about the same

On vent remains in the mid to high teens

Our cancer patients are now getting it.

30% of the population is fully vaccinated but vax rate falling off.

New cases/day steady in the 1-1900K rate

Infection rate fluctuating from 0.8-0.9's

Nowhere near the goal per the Governor's metric to lift any mandates.

[toomuchbaloney]

24 minutes ago, Wuzzie said:

Current Sitch:

Admitted Covid positives in the 30's-40's (system wide)

Admitted Suspected Covids about the same

On vent remains in the mid to high teens

Our cancer patients are now getting it.

30% of the population is fully vaccinated but vax rate falling off.

New cases/day steady in the 1-1900K rate

Infection rate fluctuating from 0.8-0.9's

Nowhere near the goal per the Governor's metric to lift any mandates.

What are the odds that the pressure will mount to lift all mandates regardless of metrics?

[Wuzzie]

6 minutes ago, toomuchbaloney said:

What are the odds that the pressure will mount to lift all mandates regardless of metrics?

Fairly good. The current metric is a moving goalpost and probably not achievable. He's making noises about changing from a case/100,000 to percent vaccinated metric which I think is a better option. People who aren't going to get the vaccine aren't going to have their minds changed but maybe those on the fence will be willing to go ahead and get the jab if it means we can open up. 

IMHO we'll open up mid-July regardless.

[toomuchbaloney]

33 minutes ago, Wuzzie said:

Fairly good. The current metric is a moving goalpost and probably not achievable. He's making noises about changing from a case/100,000 to percent vaccinated metric which I think is a better option. People who aren't going to get the vaccine aren't going to have their minds changed but maybe those on the fence will be willing to go ahead and get the jab if it means we can open up. 

IMHO we'll open up mid-July regardless.

Maybe the virus will start mutating into less contagious or deadly variants. 

[Wuzzie]

13 minutes ago, toomuchbaloney said:

Maybe the virus will start mutating into less contagious or deadly variants. 

Fingers crossed.

[NurseBlaq]

4 hours ago, toomuchbaloney said:

What are the odds that the pressure will mount to lift all mandates regardless of metrics?

Alabama's Governor is already on that path. The other southern states have done it so she apparently just has to do it too. Is it a race to the bottom or something? Too many politicians playing doctors and scientists and too many scientists and doctors playing politics is the problem.