Louisiana reports 65 deaths and 1,795 infections due to the Covid19 virus. New Orleans is the epicenter for the Louisiana epidemic as 66% of the infections are in Orleans and Jefferson parishes. 44 of the deaths are in those two parishes. The news continues to worsen for New Orleans as the Covid19 wave threatens to swamp New Orleans hospitals.One New Orleans nurse described her hospital as a "war zone." The Times-Picayune reported:
Newly released Louisiana Department of Health figures from Tuesday evening show that ICU bed capacity is lacking across the state. But it is particularly concerning in Orleans, Jefferson, St. Bernard and Plaquemines parishes, where coronavirus cases have been clustered and where just 15% of adult ICU beds are still available. In those parishes, there are 429 adult ICU beds total, while 65 are free.
Statewide, just 29% of adult ICU beds are now available, but no region has more than 50% of adult ICU beds free. The state is in better shape when it comes to total bed counts, with nearly half of total beds free across the state.
Louisiana’s COVID-19 death toll climbed to 46 on Tuesday, and the number of known coronavirus cases reached 1,338. Of those patients, 20% were hospitalized and 94 required ventilators. The state’s ventilator capacity is still OK, with every region still having more than half of its ventilators available, according to the state’s data...
More than a dozen health care workers on the front lines of the crisis say they are scrambling to treat a steady influx of patients while already short on supplies and feeling the crunch on ICU space. Of the hospitals in New Orleans, Ochsner seems to be adding patients most rapidly, according to people who work there, health care workers at other hospitals and political officials.
“The first night I worked where the entire unit was COVID patients, I got into my car and started bawling,” said the nurse. “When I tell you it's like a war zone up there, that's kind of putting it easy.”.... Rest of article.
The virus continues to feast on Louisiana nursing homes. The Times-Picayune reported:
Tuesday, the Louisiana Department of Health's Dr. Alex Billioux identified three nursing homes as clusters: Lambeth House in New Orleans, where 11 people have died and more than 40 tested positive; Chateau D'Ville in Donaldsonville, were five have tested positive; and Chateau de Notre Dame in New Orleans, where there were at least two positives. ... Rest of article.
Think this virus is a joke or worse than the flu? A respiratory therapist begs to differ in a Propublica interview:
Since last week, he’s been running ventilators for the sickest COVID-19 patients. Many are relatively young, in their 40s and 50s, and have minimal, if any, preexisting conditions in their charts. He is overwhelmed, stunned by the manifestation of the infection, both its speed and intensity. The ICU where he works has essentially become a coronavirus unit. He estimates that his hospital has admitted dozens of confirmed or presumptive coronavirus patients. About a third have ended up on ventilators.
His hospital had not prepared for this volume before the virus first appeared. One physician had tried to raise alarms, asking about negative pressure rooms and ventilators. Most staff concluded that he was overreacting. “They thought the media was overhyping it,” the respiratory therapist told me. “In retrospect, he was right to be concerned.”
He spoke to me by phone on Thursday about why, exactly, he has been so alarmed. His account has been condensed and edited for clarity.
“Reading about it in the news, I knew it was going to be bad, but we deal with the flu every year so I was thinking: Well, it’s probably not that much worse than the flu. But seeing patients with COVID-19 completely changed my perspective, and it’s a lot more frightening.” This is knocking out what should be perfectly fit, healthy people. Patients will be on minimal support, on a little bit of oxygen, and then all of a sudden, they go into complete respiratory arrest, shut down and can’t breathe at all.”..... Rest of article.
Unfortunately, paramedics are suffering from the virus as more and more are quarantined. The Times-Picayune reported:
With 16% of its workers in self-isolation due to exposure to the coronavirus, New Orleans Emergency Medical Services plans to start running ambulances to non-life-threatening situations staffed solely with emergency medical technicians and not the more highly trained paramedics who are now required to be on board....The virus doesn't spare the boys in blue. 5 police officers have the virus while 48 are stuck at home under quarantine:
At least 94 of the city's 170 EMS workers have been exposed to the virus, according to the press release. But because federal Centers for Disease Control guidelines allow medical professionals to keep working until they show symptoms, as long as they wear masks and are monitored for fever and other symptoms, only 28 have been put in isolation at home.
No EMS workers have tested positive for the virus, but many test results are pending.... Rest of article.
There are five known coronavirus cases among the New Orleans Police Department’s ranks, and an additional four dozen officers are in self-quarantine after coming into contact with someone who had either contracted the illness or was experiencing symptoms, the department said Tuesday.....
Another 51 employees had “either self-quarantined or (had) been ordered to stay home” since the beginning of the local outbreak earlier this month, among them personnel that had come into direct contact with a known COVID-19 patient or with someone exhibiting symptoms, NOPD said.
Three of those 51 employees had subsequently been cleared to return to work, leaving 48 of them still sidelined as of Tuesday, according to NOPD. .... Article.
32 comments:
This will be the Jackson Metro in 72 hours.
@12:12
Your out of your mind. Elective cases will start soon in Jackson ms. This won't happen bc we didn't invite 100 of thousands of visitors for mardi gras. Stop spreading garbage. Your not a physician it's clear nor do you work at a hospital it's obvious.
The problem is not so much with not having enough ICU BEDS available, but its having the proper personnel to staff more ICU beds.
There are plenty of beds in hospitals (particularly rural hospitals that have reduced the number of beds from their 1960's numbers to meet today's regional model) that can be converted to ICU beds if there were enough specialty trained nurses, doctors and other staff to manage the patients.
This is true in Louisiana just as it is true in MS. Of course the problem is that there is not a demand for either these ICU beds or the maintaining of staff to support them for 49.75 years out of 50. For those sky-is-falling naysayers that are crying about the 'shortage' of ICU beds during this epidemic, please tell us how much more you would be willing to pay in your medical insurance (after the massive increase from the ACA fiasco of the last decade) in order to have these beds and staff ready, on standby, for whatever "might" occur in the future.
@12:16
I hope you are right. But history shows such hubris typically leads to ruin.
12:20: Not disagreeing with you one bit. However, we should be able to get accurate data on icu beds so when this is offer, our leaders can make plans for future pandemics.
Right now, I can not get a straight answer out of the health department on what our ICU capacity is. I can get it from Harvard, the New York Times, and Propublica, but I can't get it from our own government. They wont' even give an estimate on the total number of beds and available ones. I don't expect it to be exact and realize that it can change by the hour or even minute but damn, give us some idea when we ask.
@ KF. If there is a state that can pull off a coverup just like China did in the beginning - or is as untrustworthy as the communist party in China - there is no doubt in my mind that it is the state of Mississippi. The Orwellian double speak going on right now is astoundingly higher than the percentage of covid-19 hospitalizations.
Usually people who use words to describe something as “a war zone” have never seen a war zone
There really is no way to measure. With equipment and staff almost any hospital bed can be an ICU bed. In addition to that ICU is a moneymaker so beds are usually kept as full as possible anyway. Percentage number of ICU beds filled is an almost meaningless metric. Patient to staff ratio is probably a better metric, but even that number changes rapidly.
Kingfish, how the hell does the state administer the CON program if they can't tell us how many ICU beds we have? Seems like that would be in the top 3 criteria of the whole CON discussion.
Prayers for NOLA (AGAIN)!
Timing of the arrival of this virus into the US was very bad when considering Mardi Gras. A month earlier, or even two weeks earlier, they could have cancelled Mardi Gras and they wouldn't be facing this mess. We were all drunk, fat and happy on Fat Tuesday 2020. Little did we know.
Numerous prediction algorithms have Mississippi at 68,000 requiring hospitalization by May 1. Others put our dead between 2500 and 6000 due to a lack of staff and equipment.
https://www.covidactnow.org/state/MS
when they start putting beds in the super dome, run for the hills
What is really stupid is the lack of consistency. Some counties and cities have shut down their offices to the public and protected the public and their employees and some act like business as usual. Same goes for some private businesses. Wait for the lawsuits when some staff member dies from the negligence of the decision maker that allowed this to happen. You think you’ve seen harassment lawsuits in the past—wait till the new era of lawsuits start. I predict it will include the elected officials and CEOs that allowed this to happen. Stupid is as stupid does.
Got my toilet paper yesterday, I am good for another five weeks. You won't see me in the streets. They can take that job and shove it. I am confident there are going to be some vacancies when this is over. The check from Donald, Mitch and Chuck is nice but I don't really need it, I have saved for a rainy day.
1:13 PM, so what? What is your point?
QueenTadpole
I thought this was a hoax?
2:06 lies. No one ever said the virus was a hoax. And 1:13’s predictions are wildly overstated.
Morgan,Morgan and Schwartz coming to your town soon.
I went outside, the sun was shining, and the sky was in its original location. Not one single part had fallen. As a wise man once said, this too shall pass.
Meanwhile, here in MS, Gov. Reeves takes a page from the Democratic playbook and never lets a crisis go to waste. He's been trying to end abortions for years and in the same breath as saying so he also says abortions are elective and a danger because of coronavirus. So, Mississippi's only abortion must shut down! It's a hazard to the public. The protesters say the clinic is "packing them in there". It's a crisis!
https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.nbcnews.com/news/amp/ncna1145721
It’s a hoax!
@2:49 commenting anonymously with such authority without citing any proof? 1:13 at least provided a link. What do you have to back you up?
over theist 15 or so years i cant count how many americans talk about how wonderful china is. i fondly remember phil bryant talking the place up after a trade junket to china. i heard comments like this:
in china there are no lawyers to sue you;
in china there is full employment;
in china everything is so inexpensive;
in china they have no labor unions;
china provides the usa with inexpensive products;
china is proof communism and capitalism can mix;
china has the fastest growing millionaire class in the world;
in china everyone is provided for;
i would go live in china if i could;
you money goes further in china;
china has better economic growth that the USA;
well.........tell me now all you china lovers out there, what do you think of china now? how do you like their little gift to the world called corona virus?
“We think that we’re going to continue to see this – no surprise – continue to grow,” he said. “I don’t think there’s a great deal of value in speculating on a particular date.”
And further, lightening restrictions before enough time has passed to see them actually make a dent could be disastrous.
“If we stop doing the right thing today because we think something’s going to happen in four weeks, we will make this worse,” he said.
Actual Doctor, with 30 years experience, worldwide.
But, it's the flu.... uhh, we need the churches packed on Easter... what a TV made scene that will be for my re election.....
We are in the second inning folks. This is a 2 year war. But, hey, y'all head out to drank and fish some and swing by MeeMaw's on the way home. What could happen?
https://www.militarytimes.com/news/your-military/2020/03/25/top-pentagon-doctor-discourages-putting-a-timetable-on-coronavirus/
You may not get a straight answer due to authorities trying to avoid a complete panic. I don't see it as any cover up, just common sense. Let's face it some are not going to be able to pay their bills in one month. Life could become somewhat scary if a vaccine or treatment does not come soon. Be prepared, but don't hoard, don't make a profit of this, use caution and common sense. God bless everyone.
If you believe some of the posters on here, the Covid19 virus won't kill you. Oh no, but the stress, and the frenzy from needless worry, will.
1:39 = a salivating trial lawyer
Speaking of NOLA.
We're going six months since the Hard Rock Hotel collapse.
Have they ( anyone) recovered the remains of the poor soul on the upper level yet ?
Errythang gonna be awrite! In the meanwhile, y'all just keep that sewin' machine hummin' crankin' out them face masks and surgery caps. Try to get some in each school color.
@12:52
You are 100% correct. Anyone who compares what is happening, even in NO to a war zone needs their over dramatic butt dropped into a war zone. Yes it is bad and tough decisions are being made each day, but there are no true war zones anywhere close to NO.
Another peeve - That place is like a third world nation. Hell no! as bad as they might think a place is, they need to understand how many people in the actual third world would kill to be able to live in our most poverty stricken, least economic advantaged areas.
Rant over with these words. This is a pandemic and a good bit of the spread is from folks who demand to live their own way, with little regard to the well being of others. I feel for the doctors, nurses, med techs, orderlies, food service workers, as they come to work every day to deal with a medical pandemic, caused by folks eating bats.
You are correct. However, let's cut a little slack to someone who is facing death on the job right now (Not meaning she is going to die).
Still a drop in the bucket compared to the number of common flu deaths every year.
Post a Comment