Friday, July 31, 2020

Equal Time: A Nurse's View

A local hospital nurse posted her thoughts about Covid-19 on Facebook yesterday:


So I have kept quiet about the whole COVID/corona business because I like my paycheck but let me tell y’all what corona is. Corona is having a daughter learn that her mother has just passed away via phone call. The daughter knows she most likely will not be able to attend the funeral and say goodbye because she is in the hospital on oxygen and cannot breathe without it. Corona is having an almost 80 year old man so excited to be going home to his wife finally but not knowing that she is in the hospital and not expecting to survive. Corona is having a 30 something year old person who now has a tracheostomy and peg tube with a long road to recovery if any recovery at all. COVID/CORONA does not discriminate. It does not care if you are white or black. It does not care if you are young or old. It is real and it is scary. We SEE it. We are not making it up. For everyone’s sake just wash your hands people!!! Wear a mask. Stay home if you are sick!! God bless us all

40 comments:

Anonymous said...

Another two years minimum. Cancel all sports as they cannot be played at social distances, cancel/hold school until at least next fall semester for same reason. Only essential services to be open otherwise in the home with threat of incarceration in special housing facilities. Cost be damned. Suspend the Constitution through Martial Law to facilitate these actions. Americans don't care about losing their Rights.

Kim Wade said...

The real question is.
Why are Tate Reeves and Dr.Dobbs under CDC protocols waiting until the patients who test positive for the coronavirus allowed to linger in limbo without access to pre-treatments to slow or arrest the advance of the virus?

But it's always framed that we need to wash our hands, wear a mask and social distance.

That does not answer the question.

Why health officials seem to want the virus to incubate in patients for weeks until they require hospitalization and then complain about hospitalization rates???
Kim Wade

Anonymous said...

My sincere thanks to the medical community for their selfless service. They are heroes.

A childhood friend of mine passed away last week in a Jackson hospital from Covid-19. Her husband and children finally made the difficult decision to turn off the ventilator. None of us could attend her funeral to say goodbye and pay our respects.

This disease is real, it is not merely the "flu", and one of the scariest things about it is that everyone has an individualized response to it. You don't know if you will be asymptomatic, have a light case, recover after amputations or strokes or other complications, or die.



Anonymous said...

9:23 - What a totally asinine comment. What rights have you lost? Absolutely none. You have been somewhat inconvenienced. Your cushy life style has been interrupted. But rights lost? No way. I have been in numerous countries around the world, and I am convinced by your idiotic statement that you have no concept about what losing your rights really means. Get a grip and lighten up.

Anonymous said...

We should never base decisions on large systemic problems on anecdotal accounts. Even heart-rending anecdotal accounts from nice people.

Because there will always be similarly heart-rending anecdotes cutting in the opposite direction. Pandemics, wars, and even perennial problems like health care policy all present trade-offs in which terrible things WILL happen no matter what. It's just a question of what choices you make to minimize the aggregate suffering.

Obviously we should wear masks and avoid large gatherings. But when emotional Facebook posts convert otherwise reasonable people into zealots for shutting things down at any cost --or for opening up at any cost-- that makes the situation worse.

If you want to save lives with as little long-term economic devastation as possible, follow the data, not your heart. Demand that politicians have clear plans with specific, near-term objectives, not partisan narratives or sob stories, regardless of which way they cut.

Anonymous said...

I actually read sarcasm in the posting timed 9:23. Maybe everybody needs to lighten up. I for one don't give a damn about anything going on. I fear what we, as a society, will do when something truly devastating happens. I am not impressed by the current numbers as being a reflection of any upcoming catastrophe. And before I hear about "predictions and assumed", I don't believe in that either, It is or it's not.

Anonymous said...

COVID-19 is just some nebulous inconvenience to many until it strikes close to home. I've personally known 2 people who've had the virus. One didn't make it, but the other survived. Wear the mask, wash your hands frequently, take your temperature every day, and stay home if you're sick. It's a great way to prove that you give a damn about someone besides yourself.

Anonymous said...

We did it!!! We’re #1!!!

According to the Washington Post today Mississippi has the highest infection rate in the nation. Great work guys, I knew you had it in you to ignore masks and social distancing despite the warnings from almost every expert in infectious diseases.

We’re only #2 in mortality though. Must be disappointing. I’ve got a feeling we’ll be #1 there too within the next couple of weeks as all the new cases take their course and reach their end of life.

The governor must make strong decisions now. Order schools to close until January. Tell the SEC and MHSAA they’re idiots and halt sports across the state. Local police need to be aggressive in locating and shutting down parties. The public won’t ever do their part voluntarily.

Anonymous said...

linger in limbo without access to pre-treatments? what pre-treatments?

hydroxycholoroquine? it doesn't work. nope, stop spitting, it doesn't work.

remdesivir? it's in short supply so is being reserved for the sickest.


something else you have in mind?

Anonymous said...

There is a direct correlation between us being the least educated state in the USA and the least healthy. This virus and our corresponding behavior is proving that link.

Anonymous said...

Hard questions. NOBODY knows the answers for sure. It is estimated that 320 jobs are lost in the shutdown for every Covid fatality. Is that worth it? 🤷‍♂️Hard questions indeed

Anonymous said...

There is usually a middle ground in most things. I am interested in an answer to Kim Wade's question. I know there is no cure. But are there no treatments at all?

Anonymous said...

One of my main problems...People lost Jobs, their Businesses, & rights in the name of Social Distancing & for the "Greater Good" of the Nation. But when it came to the Protests, Riots & Looting...Nothing was done. The hypocrisy is unparalleled.

No one knows the long term side affects of COVID-19. I have yet to see any data on how much quantity of the virus someone must be exposed to before one becomes infected.

Remember, in an Election Year...Everything is about the Election...

Jacksun said...

When it comes to Covid, this State's extreme libertarian bent that values independence over any form of cooperation like mask mandates for all 82 counties, or temporary partial closings or distance learning, is what makes this state have the highest positivity rate in the nation, and places this State right now at number 2 on the NYT list of States with the highest cases per 100,000 population. I see all these posts here from the extreme so called conservative, libertarian point of view that just make me hopeless that this State will ever effectively bring down the curve here before a lot more people are scarred for life or die from this virus. The Governor should at a minimum impose a Statewide Mask Mandate since the virus is not contained at County lines. The Governor should provide funds or do whatever is necessary to encourage schools to provide distance learning until a vaccine becomes available to make reopening of schools safe. The Governor should announce that his goal is to crush the curve in Mississippi, and do whatever it takes to make that happen, and to see that the rules are enforced by both State and local means. This is all temporary but we still need to get through the next 9 months until a vaccine is widely available.

Anonymous said...

I recall JJ 1st referenced a partial quote from a NOLA article, & linked it to the whole. I'm not sure how many people took the time to read the source story & another story also included in the same JJ article...But having people I knew would be treating patients, it WOKE me. This was when the Government was saying only Healthcare providers needed N95 masks...

This respiratory therapist treats coronavirus in New Orleans. He says the virus is a lot worse than you think.
BY LIZZIE PRESSER | ProPublica PUBLISHED MAR 21, 2020

https://www.nola.com/news/coronavirus/article_701fcccc-6b7f-11ea-a78e-4b0eb098d207.html

Anonymous said...

Kim Waide, I have been asking what protocols are being used and so far it seems that there is only support medications such as antibiotics until a person is so sick that they need hospitalization. Studies have shown that most people who succumb to COVID have low Vitamin D levels - why aren’t people being encouraged to take Vitamin D? There are treatments that given early enough can greatly reduce the cytokine storm that seems to cause death -why isn’t Mississippi’s protocol to use them? We aren’t being proactive enough. Wearing masks and social distancing may help but it isn’t 100% effective. I just buried a relative who followed the protocols, his family and friends followed the protocols, and he still got and died from COVID. It is a virus; it is hard to stop it. Instead of just trying to keep people from getting the virus, we also need to focus on early preventive treatment when someone gets the virus. We must begin using prophylactic methods and medicines if we are going to stop the deadly outcome of this virus.

Anonymous said...

I was with her until she went hyperbolic by throwing in the 30 year old. A 30 year old getting that sick from it is the exception - not the rule. Im in my 30s and overweight- ran a fever for 2 days, lost my taste for 2 weeks and have lost my smell for 3.5 weeks and counting but it too is beginning to come back. I've been much sicker from cold and flu infections.

Anonymous said...

A clinical trial on HCQ with or without azithromycin in patients with mild-to-moderate Covid-19 published in the NEJM this month concluded there was no real benefit to using this drug to treat the virus, and in fact produced a higher rate of cardiac and liver side effects.

The fact that it keeps being pushed by quack doctors and right-wing activists who eschew masks and social distancing mandates is baffling, but I also think if they want to gamble their health on this approach I say let them. I'm not paying for their funerals.

Anonymous said...

For all you State fans and other SEC rivals posting on here, about cancelling sports over this measly virus:

AIN'T GONN' HAPPEN.

The Lane Train has been running full throttle in beautiful Oxford since December, and it's not stopping for this virus. Or anything else! The schedules were set yesterday and the Rebels will run the entire table. John Rhys Plumlee is ready to shatter Burrow's records and it won't be surprising to anyone if he's the only player invited to the prestigious Heisman ceremony.

Hotty Toddy. This is not a dream y'all are living in. The Lane Train is real, and it's coming. Read it and weep, Farm School puppies.

Anonymous said...

@12:17
the problem is, there is not a good way to predict who will do well with this and who will not. now that time has passed, we are starting to see some of the longer term affects in young people that initially did well. and yes, less young people die, but young people do indeed still die. the best course of action is still to do your best to avoid getting infected.

Anonymous said...

Distance learning is not going go to work in a state in which the majority of the students don't want to learn. School is about having a place to send the kids during the day.

Anonymous said...

" One of my main problems...People lost Jobs, their Businesses, & rights in the name of Social Distancing & for the "Greater Good" of the Nation. But when it came to the Protests, Riots & Looting...Nothing was done. The hypocrisy is unparalleled. "

Great point 11:11 AM.

The only answer I've heard came out the mouth of Nancy Pelosi (after anarchists tore down yet another Christopher Columbus statue).

To paraphrase Madame Speaker:

" People do what people people do".

Yogi Berra actually made more profound statements.

Anonymous said...

"A clinical trial on HCQ with or without azithromycin in patients with mild-to-moderate Covid-19 published in the NEJM this month concluded there was no real benefit to using this drug to treat the virus, and in fact produced a higher rate of cardiac and liver side effects". I call BS. There is nothing else causing human beings any problems. Heart Disease, Diabetes, Cancer, Liver problems are all a hoax. Only our beloved COVID is real and will end all mankind.

Anonymous said...

9:23 sure is one smart fellow 😂🤣😂 Practically a genius! 🤣🤣🤣

Anonymous said...

@12:17 PM You’re lucky and I hope you don’t have any of the lasting issues or effects that many have afterwards. But you’re doing a disservice to the State by downplaying the virus based on your own experience. As a previous commenter stated (and which is widely accepted by many), an individual’s response to Covid varies greatly. While you survived, a similarly situated friend or family member of yours could easily die. It’s grossly irresponsible to even remotely encourage or influence people to play Russian roulette with the virus.

Anonymous said...

At this stage it comes down to the data and how you apply that to your situation. We know that the majority of people who get COVID will handle it like the regular flu. Perhaps with more or less discomfort.

But if you, or your loved ones, are one of the 3 to 5 percent that suffer lifelong complications or the 1-2% that die from COVID your perception will surely change.

9:33B and 10:10-Good post. 10:33- you must be really miserable. Bet you make others miserable too by telling them all the time how bad MS is.

Anonymous said...

COVID Mortality rates by country per John Hopkins
https://coronavirus.jhu.edu/data/mortality

Funny that we keep hearing on the news how poorly the U.S. is doing combating COVID. Yet that is not what the numbers currently show.

Cadet said...

Mississippi now has more cases per capita than Florida. The virus is raging here.

Anonymous said...

7:01 It's not the cumulative mortality rate that matters right now, it is the current mortality rate. Yes, countries that got hit hard early in the process before we had better treatments and knew how to control the spread are going to have higher rates.

The problem is now, after six months of the pandemic affecting the U.S., we have one of the highest infection and mortality rates in the world. It shows that despite all we have learned about the virus we are not using that knowledge to help save people's lives.

But I will say this. If you click on the "Deaths per 100,000 Population" tab on your linked chart you will see we are 4th in the world for per capita mortality behind only the United Kingdom, Peru, and Chile.

No matter how you look at it we are doing very, very, very bad.

Anonymous said...

All these people do not have to languish in the hospital and die. If we treated at the first signs of symptoms and/or accompanying positive test, instead of sending people home to deteriorate for 14 days, WE WOULD BEAT THIS VIRUS. Yes for most people it will be very mild. But for a small number of individuals it can be deadly serious, and we should be working as a community focused on helping and treating these patients instead of quarantining them and hoping for the best, until they become so sick they end up on a ventilator.

Prophylactic HCQ is 1-2 200 mg tablets per week. That’s it! All frontline healthcare workers, teachers, etc should have access to this drug if they want it.

Early Outpatient Treatments:
HCQ/Zpack/Zinc is saving high risk patients from hospitalization when given early in the outpatient setting!! This is NOT a controversial drug or treatment— it was made so by politicians and big pharma so YOU get sick and need their latest drug or vaccine. It’s a cheap pill which has been around for decades, FDA approved for 65 years.
Budesonide breathing treatments relieve the inflammation in the lungs if patients complain of shortness of breath.
Dr. Reed Hogan’s protocol is essentially double daily doses of Zyrtec and Pepcid which he had good success with.

Remdesivir, an IV drug, is working in some cases but in order to receive it you must meet certain criteria, the first of which is getting sick enough to be hospitalized. It’s also very expensive and the side effects tend to be more serious.

One day we will look back and see what a shame it was that instead of treating sick patients we told everyone to wear masks, hide in their houses and shut businesses down. This is not an untreatable virus, it’s just that here in the US, politics now wins over science, and the media distorts information so it causes uncertainty and discord. But I am praying every day that the scales fall off of people’s eyes and they see the truth.

Anonymous said...

The comments on here show a large loss of common sense. The virus made have started in a lab but it is still part of nature. I am amazed at how so many people think that only wearing masks, social distancing and destroying the economy will stop it. We as humans have no control over what a virus will do. The only choice that makes sense is full exposure so that our immune systems can or cannot work. We may lose some because of this but how many people are lost due to heart disease, car accidents, or other flu viruses? Many more than COVID has or ever will. Life is a gamble and everyday you never know how it will end -- unless you live in this made-up fantasy with masks...

Anonymous said...

Save it with all the rah rah about healthcare workers on the frontline. Hospitals get $13000 per patient diagnosed with Covid and $27000 for every patient with Covid on ventilator. Research the money and open your eyes!

Anonymous said...

11:30 Are you saying humans have been unable to do anything to protect against viral diseases smallpox, polio, measles, etc.? I would unequivocally state that humans can have control over what a virus will do.

The goal is to control the spread until a vaccine or effective treatment can be distributed. That way we don’t face a repeat of the Spanish Flu with almost 700,000 (the equivalent of 2,000,000 today) U.S. citizens dead.

Anonymous said...

11:30: Totally irrational comment. Herd Immunity would be 60%, not the 3% we have, kill millions of Americans, and subject many more to impairments for lung and heart functions for life. Your ignorant argument appalls me. Fox News lies and BS.

Anonymous said...

12:02 a.m. fails to recognize the distinction between healthcare corporate entities and the people who work in healthcare. The first is a legal construct, with no conscience or soul, while the second are members of our families, communities, and society.

Anonymous said...

Hydroxychloroquine DOES NOT WORK.

Anonymous said...

There is a direct correlation between Tater Reeves refusal to mandate mask-wearing and the number one infection rate in the nation.

Anyone note how Rankin County has just about caught up with Madison on positive cases?

Ask yourself why.

Anonymous said...

Well meaning, but shallow and emotional.

Anonymous said...

Quicker than I thought, Mississippi has now reached the #1 spot in the Washington Post COVID mortality rate. We’re #2 in infection rate. No signs of it getting any better. I can’t believe Tate is allowing schools to reopen next week. Absolute ignorance on his part. They will have to close because of outbreaks in a week and the kids will be worse off than if they just went virtual from the start.

Anonymous said...

Hinds County, with a mask mandate for weeks, is worse than many counties including the Coast that have had no mask mandates until just recently. How is that? Why social isolate or quarantine? Just wear a mask.



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Trollfest '07 was such a success that Jackson Jambalaya will once again host Trollfest '09. Catch this great event which will leave NE Jackson & Fondren in flames. Othor Cain and his band, The Black Power Structure headline the night while Sonjay Poontang returns for an encore performance. Former Frank Melton bodyguard Marcus Wright makes his premier appearance at Trollfest singing "I'm a Sweet Transvestite" from "The Rocky Horror Picture Show." Kamikaze will sing his new hit, “How I sold out to da Man.” Robbie Bell again performs: “Mamas, don't let your babies grow up to be Bells” and “Any friend of Ed Peters is a friend of mine”. After the show, Ms. Bell will autograph copies of her mug shot photos. In a salute to “Dancing with the Stars”, Ms. Bell and Hinds County District Attorney Robert Smith will dance the Wango Tango.

Wrestling returns, except this time it will be a Battle Royal with Othor Cain, Ben Allen, Kim Wade, Haley Fisackerly, Alan Lange, and “Big Cat” Donna Ladd all in the ring at the same time. The Battle Royal will be in a steel cage, no time limit, no referee, and the losers must leave town. Marshand Crisler will be the honorary referee (as it gives him a title without actually having to do anything).


Meet KIM Waaaaaade at the Entergy Tent. For five pesos, Kim will sell you a chance to win a deed to a crack house on Ridgeway Street stuffed in the Howard Industries pinata. Don't worry if the pinata is beaten to shreds, as Mr. Wade has Jose, Emmanuel, and Carlos, all illegal immigrants, available as replacements for the it. Upon leaving the Entergy tent, fig leaves will be available in case Entergy literally takes everything you have as part of its Trollfest ticket price adjustment charge.

Donna Ladd of The Jackson Free Press will give several classes on learning how to write. Smearing, writing without factchecking, and reporting only one side of a story will be covered. A donation to pay their taxes will be accepted and she will be signing copies of their former federal tax liens. Ms. Ladd will give a dramatic reading of her two award-winning essays (They received The Jackson Free Press "Best Of" awards.) "Why everything is always about me" and "Why I cover murders better than anyone else in Jackson".

In the spirit of helping those who are less fortunate, Trollfest '09 adopts a cause for which a portion of the proceeds and donations will be donated: Keeping Frank Melton in his home. The “Keep Frank Melton From Being Homeless” booth will sell chances for five dollars to pin the tail on the jackass. John Reeves has graciously volunteered to be the jackass for this honorable excursion into saving Frank's ass. What's an ass between two friends after all? If Mr. Reeves is unable to um, perform, Speaker Billy McCoy has also volunteered as when the word “jackass” was mentioned he immediately ran as fast as he could to sign up.


In order to help clean up the legal profession, Adam Kilgore of the Mississippi Bar will be giving away free, round-trip plane tickets to the North Pole where they keep their bar complaint forms (which are NOT available online). If you don't want to go to the North Pole, you can enjoy Brant Brantley's (of the Mississippi Commission on Judicial Performance) free guided tours of the quicksand field over by High Street where all complaints against judges disappear. If for some reason you are unable to control yourself, never fear; Judge Houston Patton will operate his jail where no lawyers are needed or allowed as you just sit there for minutes... hours.... months...years until he decides he is tired of you sitting in his jail. Do not think Judge Patton is a bad judge however as he plans to serve free Mad Dog 20/20 to all inmates.

Trollfest '09 is a pet-friendly event as well. Feel free to bring your dog with you and do not worry if your pet gets hungry, as employees of the Jackson Zoo will be on hand to provide some of their animals as food when it gets to be feeding time for your little loved one.

Relax at the Fox News Tent. Since there are only three blonde reporters in Jackson (being blonde is a requirement for working at Fox News), Megan and Kathryn from WAPT and Wendy from WLBT will be on loan to Fox. To gain admittance to the VIP section, bring either your Republican Party ID card or a Rebel Flag. Bringing both and a torn-up Obama yard sign will entitle you to free drinks served by Megan, Wendy, and Kathryn. Get your tickets now. Since this is an event for trolls, no ID is required. Just bring the hate. Bring the family, Trollfest '09 is for EVERYONE!!!

This is definitely a Beaver production.


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Jackson Jambalaya is the home of Trollfest '07. Catch this great event which promises to leave NE Jackson & Fondren in flames. Sonjay Poontang and his band headline the night with a special steel cage, no time limit "loser must leave town" bout between Alan Lange and "Big Cat"Donna Ladd following afterwards. Kamikaze will perform his new song F*** Bush, he's still a _____. Did I mention there was no referee? Dr. Heddy Matthias and Lori Gregory will face off in the undercard dueling with dangling participles and other um, devices. Robbie Bell will perform Her two latest songs: My Best Friends are in the Media and Mama's, Don't Let Your Babies Grow up to be George Bell. Sid Salter of The Clarion-Ledger will host "Pin the Tail on the Trial Lawyer", sponsored by State Farm.

There will be a hugging booth where in exchange for your young son, Frank Melton will give you a loooong hug. Trollfest will have a dunking booth where Muhammed the terrorist will curse you to Allah as you try to hit a target that will drop him into a vat of pig grease. However, in the true spirit of Separate But Equal, Don Imus and someone from NE Jackson will also sit in the dunking booth for an equal amount of time. Tom Head will give a reading for two hours on why he can't figure out who the hell he is. Cliff Cargill will give lessons with his .80 caliber desert eagle, using Frank Melton photos as targets. Tackleberry will be on hand for an autograph session. KIM Waaaaaade will be passing out free titles and deeds to crackhouses formerly owned by The Wood Street Players.

If you get tired come relax at the Fox News Tent. To gain admittance to the VIP section, bring either your Republican Party ID card or a Rebel Flag. Bringing both will entitle you to free drinks.Get your tickets now. Since this is an event for trolls, no ID is required, just bring the hate. Bring the family, Trollfest '07 is for EVERYONE!!!

This is definitely a Beaver production.

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