A doctor and a nurse each gave reports on the COVID-19 pandemic and Cogdell Memorial Hospital’s response to it at the Scurry County Hospital District board meeting Wednesday morning.
Dr. David Kerr offered a reminder that the disease was almost non-existent in the United States two months ago.
“About seven weeks ago, the threat of coronavirus was a far distant and almost abstract threat,” Kerr said. “The United States had diagnosed 353 cases. Twenty-two people had died in the United States, and we were being told that virtually all the cases were being imported and there was not much community spread occurring.”
Kerr thanked his co-workers.
“I can’t name everyone, but I just wanted you all to know that everyone is really pulling together as a team right now, and I am totally honored to be a part of the team,” he said.
Kerr warned against becoming complacent due to the low local coronavirus numbers.
“At the end of almost two months of preparation, we have had two cases of coronavirus locally. These were several weeks ago, and there is, I think, a sense of complacency settling in.”
Kerr used the example of Dumas in the Texas Panhandle.
“Dumas, Texas, as I’m sure you’re all aware from the news, a town our size near Amarillo has almost 300 cases at the moment,” he said. “It’s magical thinking to assume we will remain unaffected. On a broader scale, as we open up the economy, churches and other gatherings, even as things open up in the coming weeks, we are supposed to follow good advice concerning hygiene, social distancing and so on.”
Chief Nursing Officer Kathy Goodwin also reported on the different states of affairs before and during the pandemic.
“On March 9, 2020, everyone had free access to the hospital — patients, visitors and staff. Multiple entrances were used to enter the hospital. The Pink Ladies mingled around the lobby and greeted and assisted everyone,” she said. “Surgeries were scheduled as needed, and the OR was busy on most days. The ER was kept busy also. Specialty clinics were bustling. Hospital patients were able to have anyone visit them, pretty much any time. No one wore masks unless their patient was in isolation.”
Less than two months later, things have changed dramatically, she said.
“Everyone must enter the hospital through the main lobby — that’s staff, patients and visitors — and everyone must pass a screening process to be allowed to enter,” Goodwin said. “The lobby and the hallways are strangely quiet. Many patients are being tested and screened out front in the driveway in front of the hospital. Everyone in the hospital wears a mask. Everyone. All the time.”
Other changes include a halt to elective surgeries, closing the specialty clinic, no Pink Ladies auxiliary volunteers in the lobby and closing the gift shop.
The board approved seven new appointments, including children’s tele-health worker Sara Munoz-Blanco; John Howard Rose, MD, Imre Kocsis, DO, and Indira Mikiel, MD, for walk-in duty; anesthesiologist Sean Le; Nancy Chandler, MD, of Lubbock Radiology; and Bao Nguyen, MD, of Direct Radiology.
The board also approved a new procalcitonin procedure on the hospital’s Kryptor analyzer. Kerr said the device is used in evaluating patients for coronavirus. The board also approved a new policy on Imprivata Cortext and a secure texting phone app used by hospital staff, as well as the finance, quality management and administration reports before entering closed session.
The board adjourned the meeting without further action upon returning to open session.