# News from my local paper on Covid



## MarciKS

https://salinapost.com/posts/9aec6b8c-8a3d-4faf-9a8c-a3062c0e6c81
*ND governor OKs COVID infected nurses to keep working*

BISMARCK, N.D. — The North Dakota Nurses Association says it doesn’t support a move to allow health care workers who have tested positive for the coronavirus but don’t have symptoms to remain on the job.

Gov. Doug Burgum supports the idea to ease stress both on hospitals and medical personnel amid skyrocketing coronavirus cases in North Dakota. Burgum says hospital administrators asked for the action and interim State Health Officer Dirk Wilke amended an order to allow it to take effect.


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## MarciKS

https://salinapost.com/posts/0fb7df00-1ac3-4045-8a0c-12ad57e679c4
*Docs: Kan. hospitals reaching capacity; '... the entire Midwest is on fire'*

Hospitals across the state are nearing capacity due to a surge of COVID-19 patients.

"We're at a crossroads, and we have a choice to make," Steven Stites, University of Kansas Health System chief medical officer, said during the health system's Thursday morning press conference. "Our choice will dictate how the next months or year goes for the health of the people you care about.

"When you get health care resources that are overwhelmed, it is not just the COVID patients who suffer. It's if you have a heart attack or stroke. Where are you going to go?"


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## MarciKS

KS hospitals are not as big and do not have the support of drs and nurses rushing in to help out if we get in a situation like some of these other hospitals have seen. We are in a very critical situation when the sh*t hits the fan here. I've seen an avg of 3-4 bodies every couple days making their way to our morgue. We usually meet them in the hall now. Didn't used to be as bad. 

And allowing staff who've been exposed or tested positive isn't going to do us any favors. I honestly will be very surprised if I don't get it or if I get it and survive. Things are starting to go downhill here very quickly.


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## MarciKS

This is a recent map of all the fires.
https://fire.airnow.gov/?lat=38.83278030064842&lng=-97.62011138842323&zoom=10


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## Geezerette

What is the matter with those ignorant governors? Have they no scientific  education at all? Are they pandering to the fools who either want to keep their businesses open, or do their partying, I no matter who dies? Ours had been strict and guided by medical science from the beginning. But the ignorant greedy folks who ignore warnings have pushed our death rate to an all time high, probably prompting more restriction. We will probably find out later today at her news conference.


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## Aunt Marg

MarciKS said:


> https://salinapost.com/posts/9aec6b8c-8a3d-4faf-9a8c-a3062c0e6c81
> *ND governor OKs COVID infected nurses to keep working*
> 
> BISMARCK, N.D. — The North Dakota Nurses Association says it doesn’t support a move to allow health care workers who have tested positive for the coronavirus but don’t have symptoms to remain on the job.
> 
> Gov. Doug Burgum supports the idea to ease stress both on hospitals and medical personnel amid skyrocketing coronavirus cases in North Dakota. Burgum says hospital administrators asked for the action and interim State Health Officer Dirk Wilke amended an order to allow it to take effect.


Amazing, simply amazing. 

Time for the North Dakota Nurses Association to get off it's duff and stand up to this nonsense!


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## StarSong

I'm confused.  Post #2 discusses a metaphorical fire of COVID spreading.  Iin post #4 you offer a link to literal fires (like house fires, I presume).  

Is Kansas having a problem with massive injuries from actual fires (forest or brush) as well as COVID illnesses? Are they combining to overwhelm your hospitals?


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## Sunny

Don't bite my head off for asking this, but I'm curious.  If the covid-19 positive nurses were restricted to caring for covid-19 patients ONLY, what would be wrong with that?


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## MarciKS

StarSong said:


> I'm confused.  Post #2 discusses a metaphorical fire of COVID spreading.  Iin post #4 you offer a link to literal fires (like house fires, I presume).
> 
> Is Kansas having a problem with massive injuries from actual fires (forest or brush) as well as COVID illnesses? Are they combining to overwhelm your hospitals?


Sorry...that is a map of all the fires. Several now are near KS. I think the hospitals have been getting patients from that too.


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## MarciKS

Sunny said:


> Don't bite my head off for asking this, but I'm curious.  If the covid-19 positive nurses were restricted to caring for covid-19 patients ONLY, what would be wrong with that?


That's just it...I'm not so sure that they are only tending to Covid patients.


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## MarciKS

This was in today's local paper. 
TOPEKA— The number of confirmed coronavirus cases in Kansas increased by 6,282 to a total of 115,507, the state health department reported Friday afternoon. 

The county I'm in is up past 1500 now. We've been seeing 3 - 5 bodies going to the morgue per week now.


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## MarciKS

Residents in our nursing homes are starting to get Covid now.


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## Pepper

MarciKS said:


> That's just it...I'm not so sure that they are only tending to Covid patients.


No, no, no.  No one would leave themselves open to huge malpractice claims that would follow.  Has to be covid to covid.  It's still wrong.


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## MarciKS




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## MarciKS

Pepper said:


> No, no, no.  No one would leave themselves open to huge malpractice claims that would follow.  Has to be covid to covid.  It's still wrong.


I don't know. According to that article in the first post about that situation in ND it doesn't say anything about them only taking care of Covid patients.


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## Pepper

MarciKS said:


> I don't know. According to that article in the first post about that situation in ND it doesn't say anything about them only taking care of Covid patients.


Think of the law suits!  Was about to say they can't be that stupid, But............sure they can.


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## MarciKS

Plus they're not just around the Covid patients. They would essentially be exposing everyone else to it as well.


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## MarciKS

We had a patient that claimed he got Covid from a staff member here. He got mad and got his crap and left the hospital. I have no idea if he's ok or not. I don't know him.


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## MarciKS

This is the situation here as of yesterday.

Our Covid rooms are starting to fill up. They are making small adjustments at first. I think they're game plan is going to be utilizing the rooms we have on site. They are making 3 more negative pressure rooms in ICU. We have 10 patients in on the 3rd floor and 8 in ICU on ventilators. I think the ones on ventilators are all old that's why they're dying. The chief of medicine says we have 31 positive test results out now and 212 pending. So we're expecting a lot of positive test results over the weekend.

Right now I don't know what's gonna happen. I just know it won't take much for us to be overwhelmed. I think things are going to be bad here over Thanksgiving. At this point it's just scary because you don't know if you yourself will live to see 2021 when you work in healthcare. Or any other essential job.

I will keep you updated.


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## Becky1951

"I think the ones on ventilators are all old that's why they're dying."

I'm old. Lots of us are old. They are dying due to Covid, without catching it, they may have lots of good years left.  Scary


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## DaveA

Why does this fall on the individual governors?  It's a nationwide pandemic and should have been handled uniformly across the country.  States that had been relatively free of the illness, ignored the warnings and now are suffering from their lack of caution.

Makes little sense from a health perspective? I don't think that state or county boundaries are recognized by the disease.  Now a flock of people have to die off while these states finally "mask up" and try and stem the spread?


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## StarSong

DaveA said:


> Why does this fall on the individual governors?


Because that's how our laws are written. An answer to this very question on another thread by @AnnieA:

_Because the federal government has constitutionally designed limited powers.  Here are a couple of articles explaining it more:

https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2020/03/why-theres-no-national-lockdown/609127/

https://www.npr.org/2020/04/02/8252...le-to-order-a-national-quarantine-experts-say _


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## AnnieA

DaveA said:


> Why does this fall on the individual governors?  It's a nationwide pandemic and should have been handled uniformly across the country.  States that had been relatively free of the illness, ignored the warnings and now are suffering from their lack of caution.
> 
> Makes little sense from a health perspective? I don't think that state or county boundaries are recognized by the disease.  Now a flock of people have to die off while these states finally "mask up" and try and stem the spread?




Our system of government is a representative democracy with a Constitution designed to limit the powers of federal government. So there's no provision for a federal lockdown as @StarSong posted above.  Even if there were, there's no federal level means of enforcing one short of martial law.  Maybe??? federal marshalls could arrest without martial law, but there are 3,000+ marshalls for 300,000,000+ people.

The differing lockdown rules within a nation isn't unique to the US.   England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales are operating under different rules as are states in Australia and other countries.

As for the disease not recognizing borders, US states have the power to limit travel across their borders.


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## DaveA

I'm glad to hear that so many are happy with the handling of the pandemic on a national level, here in the US.  I guess that I was wrong in even suggesting that the federal government could have come forward, early on, with strong recommendations pertaining to the handling of this national crisis.


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## AnnieA

DaveA said:


> I'm glad to hear that so many are happy with the handling of the pandemic on a national level, here in the US.  I guess that I was wrong in even suggesting that the federal government could have come forward, early on, with strong recommendations pertaining to the handling of this national crisis.



How do you get emotion out of much needed basic civics lessons?

You asked: 





> Why does this fall on the individual governors?


 and got explanations.  Doesn't mean that those of us who answered you are happy about any aspect of the pandemic.


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## OneEyedDiva

MarciKS said:


> KS hospitals are not as big and do not have the support of drs and nurses rushing in to help out if we get in a situation like some of these other hospitals have seen. We are in a very critical situation when the sh*t hits the fan here. I've seen an avg of 3-4 bodies every couple days making their way to our morgue. We usually meet them in the hall now. Didn't used to be as bad.
> 
> And allowing staff who've been exposed or tested positive isn't going to do us any favors. I honestly will be very surprised if I don't get it or if I get it and survive. Things are starting to go downhill here very quickly.


Marci I pray you don't get the virus! One thing that gets me is that the traditional medical masks have gaps in them. I know it's out of desperation that these nurses infected with COVID are being allowed to work but I sure hope they are in full hasmat gear.


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## Sunny

What if the entire country was threatened by an enemy power?  The president is allowed, and in fact expected, to declare war, right?  So why can't we just consider this disease an "enemy," which it is?  

In the case of human enemies, we wouldn't expect each individual governor to decide what to do about it, would we?


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## MarciKS

OneEyedDiva said:


> Marci I pray you don't get the virus! One thing that gets me is that the traditional medical masks have gaps in them. I know it's out of desperation that these nurses infected with COVID are being allowed to work but I sure hope they are in full hasmat gear.


Those tending to Covid patients are. Otherwise they come down in surgical masks and safety glasses to the cafeteria and eat in there with all of us. Yesterday they were blaming our clusters on the fact that 1/2 the dining room is closed down. Which is BS because they don't distance in the dining room anymore than they do in the nurses lounges.

@Becky1951 I have read more than one article on different occasions and seen some of the videos posted on YouTube saying that the ventilators are killing some of the older folks. Don't ask me for links cuz I don't have them. And after the day I've had I'm not gonna go looking. No offense.

Half of our Covid beds are full and I imagine by the time tomorrow is through we will be either full or close to it in our Covid unit. Any procedures that are not emergencies that are going to use a bed overnight are not being allowed in case we need the bed. 

@OneEyedDiva thank you. I need all the prayers I can get. I hope I don't get it either. Right now I'm really scared and not myself so I'm gonna head out for the night. 

Yall take care of yourselves.


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## AnnieA

Sunny said:


> What if the entire country was threatened by an enemy power?  The president is allowed, and in fact expected, to declare war, right?  So why can't we just consider this disease an "enemy," which it is?
> 
> In the case of human enemies, we wouldn't expect each individual governor to decide what to do about it, would we?



Declaring war mobilizes the military.  If the president and Congress 'could' declare war on a virus present in Americans on American soil, that would result in martial law.   This article gives a good overview of what can and can't happen as a result of the pandemic. 

https://www.brennancenter.org/our-w...dent-declare-martial-law-response-coronavirus


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## Butterfly

DaveA said:


> I'm glad to hear that so many are happy with the handling of the pandemic on a national level, here in the US.  I guess that I was wrong in even suggesting that the federal government could have come forward, early on, with strong recommendations pertaining to the handling of this national crisis.




I, for one, am in no way happy with the handling of the pandemic on a national level.  However, the truth is that our state constitutions handle how health emergencies will be handled within the individual states.  It's the law and that's just how it is.

The feds could do a hell of a lot more than they have, however, in management of resources like PPE, ventilators, etc., providing straight and transparent information about the pandemic, assisting the states with funding, etc.  And yes, the federal government could have made a lot more scientifically-based, consistent, strong recommendations as to handling of this crisis.


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## Butterfly

Sunny said:


> What if the entire country was threatened by an enemy power?  The president is allowed, and in fact expected, to declare war, right?  So why can't we just consider this disease an "enemy," which it is?
> 
> In the case of human enemies, we wouldn't expect each individual governor to decide what to do about it, would we?



Under our system of government and federal and state constitutions, war and pandemics are two different colored horses, subject to entirely different laws and regulations.  Barring some constitutional amendments, it's the way it is and will stay.


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## MarciKS

11/13 numbers for my county: 190 new cases bringing the total to 1603. 366 pending test results and 17 deaths.


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## MarciKS

This is why COVID has gotten out of control. As long as this crap continues there's gonna be a risk of all of us getting it and possibly dying.

https://www.huffpost.com/entry/how-...accine-dakota-iowa_n_5fb0a0e7c5b6b956698bbe7d


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## MarciKS

our CMO sent out an email calling for all hands on deck over the next few weeks or more.


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## OneEyedDiva

Butterfly said:


> I, for one, am in no way happy with the handling of the pandemic on a national level.  However, the truth is that our state constitutions handle how health emergencies will be handled within the individual states.  It's the law and that's just how it is.
> 
> The feds could do a hell of a lot more than they have, however, in management of resources like PPE, ventilators, etc., providing straight and transparent information about the pandemic, assisting the states with funding, etc.  And yes, the federal government could have made a lot more scientifically-based, consistent, strong recommendations as to handling of this crisis.


I saw not one but two governors say flat out that they were made to feel as if they had to bid for PPEs for their states' hospitals as if they were on Ebay. There is something *very wrong *with that picture! This pandemic was mishandled since before day one (the warning came from intelligence back in November 2019 to start preparing). It did not help that the health experts who didn't agree with you know who were undermined at every turn!


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## MarciKS

Don't mind me....I'm dropping off a little bit of shenanigans.


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## garyt1957

DaveA said:


> I'm glad to hear that so many are happy with the handling of the pandemic on a national level, here in the US.  I guess that I was wrong in even suggesting that the federal government could have come forward, early on, with strong recommendations pertaining to the handling of this national crisis.


Basically you asked a question, you got schooled and now your mad because you didn't get the response you wanted.


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## MarciKS

garyt1957 said:


> Basically you asked a question, you got schooled and now your mad because you didn't get the response you wanted.


Actually I didn't think they handled it all that well either. They could've done better from the start.


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## MarciKS

The total for the county is now 1,729, with 383 cases that are actively being monitored by the Health Department. The death toll is still at 17.


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## gennie

New book, _Rage_ by B. Woodward, shows the details of the national response to original Covid information.


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## rgp

Sunny said:


> Don't bite my head off for asking this, but I'm curious.  If the covid-19 positive nurses were restricted to caring for covid-19 patients ONLY, what would be wrong with that?



 I'm curious about where these nurses got the virus ? I mean if all the personal protective gear , mask etc. work? And are a safeguard against it ? How did they catch it? Is all the gear a crap-shoot?


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## Sunny

Butterfly said:


> Under our system of government and federal and state constitutions, war and pandemics are two different colored horses, subject to entirely different laws and regulations.  Barring some constitutional amendments, it's the way it is and will stay.



How about natural disasters such as floods, hurricanes, etc?  Doesn't the federal government step in when needed?  (At least, they're supposed to.)


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## AnnieA

Sunny said:


> How about natural disasters such as floods, hurricanes, etc?  Doesn't the federal government step in when needed?  (At least, they're supposed to.)



Again, it goes back to the states.  The governor of the affected area has to formally request federal assistance.


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## AnnieA

rgp said:


> I'm curious about where these nurses got the virus ? I mean if all the personal protective gear , mask etc. work? And are a safeguard against it ? How did they catch it? Is all the gear a crap-shoot?



Probably multiple ways.  You'd have to know what precautions each nurse took outside of work, whether or not they were practicing proper "donning and doffing" of PPE, what the viral load was in the areas in which each worked.


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## DaveA

DaveA said:


> I'm glad to hear that so many are happy with the handling of the pandemic on a national level, here in the US.  I guess that I was wrong in even suggesting that the federal government could have come forward, early on, with strong recommendations pertaining to the handling of this national crisis.


Re-quoting my own post - - -I understand how our system of government works. Evidently some don't understand or didn't read the words "strong recommendations".  There was and is nothing stopping our federal government setting forth and recommending a plan to fight or minimize this pandemic.  
They didn't and are not doing anything, rather our federal leadership has contributed nothing in the way of guidance and actually criticized individual states in their attempts to slow down the spread of this mess.


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## AnnieA

OneEyedDiva said:


> This pandemic was mishandled since before day one (since the warning came from intelligence back in November 2019 to start preparing).



This has perplexed and angered me from the first.  How the hell did anyone advised early by intelligence of the situation in China not think this was going to go global? Yet our leaders and top health advisors were blowing it off as late as mid February, and the CDC not only flubbed the ability to test accurately, but aso sent tests out that they KNEW were flawed (NPR article hyperlink)

And I've just about become a conspiracy theory believer in that the EU, UK and US and other parts of the western world all waited until it was full blown in their areas before taking aggressive action.  Did they all independently stick their heads in the sand, or was it a concerted effort to prioritize western economic interests as long as possible?


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## Becky1951

"or was it a concerted effort to prioritize western economic interests as long as possible?"

*Bingo.*


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## AnnieA

DaveA said:


> Re-quoting my own post - - -I understand how our system of government works. Evidently some don't understand or didn't read the words "strong recommendations".  There was and is nothing stopping our federal government setting forth and recommending a plan to fight or minimize this pandemic.
> They didn't and are not doing anything, rather our federal leadership has contributed nothing in the way of guidance and actually criticized individual states in their attempts to slow down the spread of this mess.



We all know what you meant and you don't know how some of the rest of us think about things that we aren't supposed to discuss per rules of this forum.  Just because you feel special enough to continually sneak your political views in frequently doesn't mean that those of us who don't act that way necessarily disagree with you.


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## OneEyedDiva

Becky1951 said:


> "or was it a concerted effort to prioritize western economic interests as long as possible?"
> 
> *Bingo.*


@AnnieA ...what Becky said!


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## AnnieA

Becky1951 said:


> "or was it a concerted effort to prioritize western economic interests as long as possible?"
> 
> *Bingo.*



The concerted part is worrying.  We know all those leaders didn't get together on a conference call to do so or that would surely have been leaked by now.  So are they getting marching orders?  If so, from whom?


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## DaveA

AnnieA said:


> We all know what you meant and you don't know how some of the rest of us think about things that we aren't supposed to discuss per rules of this forum.  Just because you feel special enough to continually sneak your political views in frequently doesn't mean that those of us who don't act that way necessarily disagree with you.


I'm truly sorry that you feel that way about my posts but I see nothing untrue in what I posted. The thread has to do with Covid, which seems to be getting more deadly by the day.  I offered up an opinion on  the handling of the situation and what I thought was lacking.  I purposely stayed away from any name(s) or individuals but what else is there to discuss, other than the attempts, or lack of same, to get a grip on this tragedy that is overwhelming our medical systems and the medical personnel that are bearing the brunt of this disaster

If I offended you (or anyone else) you have my apology  and I'd be glad if someone could disagree with my statement and put a happy face on this situation.


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## Sunny

It's been mishandled from the start. In many countries, including our own, I got the feeling that the Three Stooges were dealing with the pandemic. (They might have done a better job!)  Nobody knew what to do, they wanted to bolster economic interests as long as possible, at whatever price to human beings, and the spread of disinformation was unbelievable. Denial was the order of the day.

And even with the number of Covid cases in the US the highest in the world, way more than India, which is second, apparently some of us are still in denial, juggling figures to show that it really isn't so bad, if you look at the statistics this way instead of that way.

Like the line in The Wizard of Oz, "Pay no attention to that man behind the curtain..."  that "man" being a deadly virus that would wipe out the human race if given the chance.  And yet, there are still people deliberately walking into the line of fire by refusing to wear masks.


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## AnnieA

Sunny said:


> It's been mishandled from the start. In many countries, including our own, I got the feeling that the Three Stooges were dealing with the pandemic. (They might have done a better job!)  Nobody knew what to do, they wanted to bolster economic interests as long as possible, at whatever price to human beings, and the spread of disinformation was unbelievable. Denial was the order of the day.
> 
> And even with the number of Covid cases in the US the highest in the world, way more than India, which is second, apparently some of us are still in denial, juggling figures to show that it really isn't so bad, if you look at the statistics this way instead of that way.



Definitely agree with paragraph one!

Paragraph two ... on my part, I don't look at stats as a whole because I'm in denial.  It's because I was taught to do it in ...statistics classes.  

You never look at one quantative variable in science.  All those numbers, cases per population, testing per population are necessary for a reasonably accurate view of the Big Picture.  That's why Worldometers has the data table columns designed with the ability to look at a field from highest to lowest or vice versa to help with overall analysis.   And since the pandemic isn't a controlled experiment with conditions, much less numbers, in all countries being equal, there are multiple confounding variables.


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## MarciKS

rgp said:


> I'm curious about where these nurses got the virus ? I mean if all the personal protective gear , mask etc. work? And are a safeguard against it ? How did they catch it? Is all the gear a crap-shoot?


They are getting it because they are not distancing and they are going ahead and attending weddings and parties and visiting friends and family and hugging and kissing and not masking. Also they are still traveling despite the fact that this is part of the problem. They are bringing it in and spreading it amongst each other.

I also don't believe they're wearing their gear properly at all times. They paw their masks and touch everything.

When I say they're not distancing...it's not just outside of work. They sit right next to one another and across from one another in groups of 6 or more at the dinner tables in the cafeteria as well as what they do outside of work.


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## MarciKS

Let's not stray into politics and get another thread locked please.


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## MarciKS

DaveA said:


> I'm truly sorry that you feel that way about my posts but I see nothing untrue in what I posted. The thread has to do with Covid, which seems to be getting more deadly by the day.  I offered up an opinion on  the handling of the situation and what I thought was lacking.  I purposely stayed away from any name(s) or individuals but what else is there to discuss, other than the attempts, or lack of same, to get a grip on this tragedy that is overwhelming our medical systems and the medical personnel that are bearing the brunt of this disaster
> 
> If I offended you (or anyone else) you have my apology  and I'd be glad if someone could disagree with my statement and put a happy face on this situation.


You didn't offend me. I totally agree.


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## MarciKS

Before I forget...I talked with someone in employee health this morning about this new vaccine. We were discussing the formaldehyde issue. He was telling me that from what he's read this new vaccine will be freeze dried into a powder form at -40 F and then they have to add sterile water to the syringe and shake it up to get it liquified right before they inject it. He was saying that's how they will preserve it through the freeze drying or freeze dried storage. He's gonna try to email me a link when they find out what we're getting and from who so I can see what's in it or contact the company to find out. If I can take it I think I'm going to. I don't like not knowing the long term affects but with my COPD it might be best if I just go ahead and do it as long as I'm not allergic to any ingredients.


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## MarciKS

I have also overheard conversations amongst staff members stating that their whole families have had covid. Some hospitalized. Some not. Some cases lasted weeks some not.


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## DaveA

MarciKS said:


> This is why COVID has gotten out of control. As long as this crap continues there's gonna be a risk of all of us getting it and possibly dying.
> 
> https://www.huffpost.com/entry/how-...accine-dakota-iowa_n_5fb0a0e7c5b6b956698bbe7d


Thanks for you post MarciKS.  One of our grand-daughters and a niece are both RN's (same hospital) and are being "run into the ground".  That's part of what has annoyed me so much about the cavalier attitude in some parts of the country.  IMHO, it didn't have to be this way and possibly could have been better contained with a nationwide effort.


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## MarciKS

DaveA said:


> Thanks for you post MarciKS.  One of our grand-daughters and a niece are both RN's (same hospital) and are being "run into the ground".  That's part of what has annoyed me so much about the cavalier attitude in some parts of the country.  IMHO, it didn't have to be this way and possibly could have been better contained with a nationwide effort.


Yup.


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## MarciKS

Well...another Covid death yesterday. Today the Covid patients jumped 10. We are now 17 beds away from being full. I have no idea how bad things are going to get here. Topeka's hospital is full. Some of them are setting up field hospitals in the parking lots.


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## MarciKS

According to our Governor...we are losing medical personnel in KS due to burnout.


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## MarciKS

Ok. Another Covid death today. Covid patient count went down to 24? I'm sure after thanksgiving next week if not before it's going to take off. We have 77 employees out with Covid or quarantined or on modified quarantine (meaning their working). A nurse said they are getting it from activities outside of work (because they can't follow the rules) and bringing it into work.


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## MarciKS

Our county now has 1,850 cases of Covid. 121 were new as of yesterday.


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## MarciKS

Wednesday we had 366 cases. Today it's 500. We had 34 COVID trays at supper. Four on ventilators. The ER was filling up when I left. Also the sounds of ambulance sirens is becoming more frequent. They're also taking in people from other communities. I think  is starting to hit the fan here. If it gets bad we're screwed. We don't have the staffing to have a lot of options. We may have 60 beds all total. After that...don't want to think about what's gonna happen.


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## Murrmurr

MarciKS said:


> Wednesday we had 366 cases. Today it's 500. We had 34 COVID trays at supper. Four on ventilators. The ER was filling up when I left. Also the sounds of ambulance sirens is becoming more frequent. They're also taking in people from other communities. I think  is starting to hit the fan here. If it gets bad we're screwed. We don't have the staffing to have a lot of options. We may have 60 beds all total. After that...don't want to think about what's gonna happen.


Any word on whether the military will be (or has been) asked to help? They're supposed to be prepared to offer beds and medical personnel.


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## MarciKS

I'm not sure Murrmurr. Supposedly the county commission had a meeting this afternoon but I haven't had a chance to look and see if there's been any report on that.


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## MarciKS

So far all I see is help with meal packages for jobless.


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## Murrmurr

MarciKS said:


> So far all I see is help with meal packages for jobless.


Okay, so your gov't isn't only ignorant, it's sslllloww. Well hope you have a good night anyway. Keep posting, if you don't mind.


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## MarciKS

LOL! Our government is lousy. And I will unless for some reason the thread gets locked.


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## PopsnTuff

@MarciKS, my heart and soul goes out to you girl, bringing tears to my eyes after reading all your updated posts.....
I wanna say please leave your job for your safety and well being but I know that's easier said than done....its probably your meal ticket to survive, but just know we're all thinking of you each day   ..... and sending big hugs your way (((((  ))))).....Thank you for all you do at your hospital to care for others xo


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## MarciKS

*Hugs*


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## MarciKS

You know...I've been in food service for nearly 40 yrs and this is the craziest thing I've ever experienced. Definitely the scariest. But at some point in life someone has to stand up to do the hard things. I was gonna leave at first. But I can't. It's necessary I be there. My life isn't worth anything if I'm not able to be a part of taking care of others. If I'm going to die I want there to be a purpose to it. Everyone talks about people hiding in their homes in fear. I don't do that. I stay home in an effort to stay safer and keep others safer. But each day we go to work we are facing fear head on to help take care of people like you and me. 

If we all quit who would be there to take care of you all? This is what I do. This is who I am. I can't turn my back on people who need us. The patients families need us. Sometimes we're their only support. At least I'm not a nurse having to watch these people die. I usually run into them in the hall on the way to the morgue. It's going to be a difficult winter. But I plan to remain strong and do my best to stay safe and take care of myself. You never know when your comforting words are gonna help a visitor relax or your smile is gonna lift the spirits of a nurse whose having to deal with this for 12 hrs a day. 

It's not easy knowing you're serving food to someone whose caring for COVID patients and not acting like they've got the plague. It's a struggle for all of us to stay calm. The nursing staff is having a hard time with this. We all are. We watch the numbers rise and we don't know what's going to happen. We've had several in our dept alone that have had to quarantine. Two that have had COVID. It can strike any one of us at any time. I may not always like my co-workers but...I'm proud of the fact that they too haven't chickened out and quit. It's in God's hands.


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## Butterfly

Marci, if I were in your shoes I would be scared to death.  I think you're very courageous to keep on working there.  I'll keep you in my thoughts and prayers (really).


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## MarciKS

I talked to a nurse in the cafeteria today that's been in the COVID unit all week working. She told me she's scared to death. I wanted so bad to hug her because I felt so bad for her. But I can't. It's too risky for either of us. 

I am scared. Every single day. I used to sit and visit with co-workers. Now I flit around so I'm not in one spot too long just in case. It's impossible to not be paranoid. Especially with people's hygiene habits. You never know.


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## MarciKS

We must have had some tests that were negative because we went from 514 active cases on Friday to 505 today. 

My mother called to inform me that my baby brother and sister-in-law have it. Supposedly they can tell if a person has a mild case of it which means they will only be sick like a week. I've not seen any reports of this in any papers. Has anyone else?


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## Sunny

Sorry to hear that your family has been affected, Marci.

From what I've read on the subject, the disease is very unpredictable and can take many twists and turns. Some people get the bug and never even have any symptoms, particularly if they are young and healthy. But not all.  Some people have a "mild case," think they are over it, and then, wham! The really bad symptoms suddenly come rushing in. 

I don't think we can make any assumptions about this disease, except that it's a good idea not to get it.


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## MarciKS

Sunny said:


> Sorry to hear that your family has been affected, Marci.
> 
> From what I've read on the subject, the disease is very unpredictable and can take many twists and turns. Some people get the bug and never even have any symptoms, particularly if they are young and healthy. But not all.  Some people have a "mild case," think they are over it, and then, wham! The really bad symptoms suddenly come rushing in.
> 
> I don't think we can make any assumptions about this disease, except that it's a good idea not to get it.


They told him that since their symptoms were mild that they should be ok in a week. I hope for their sake whoever told them that is right. They haven't been staying home and my brother works in a Walmart and nobody will mask in there except employees. Also his wife said that a lady who works with her showed up to work and never told them her husband had it. People are so stupid.


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## MarciKS

They sent 2 Covid patients home today. One that died yesterday got taken out today and we had another Covid death this evening right before supper.


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## MarciKS

Today's numbers...2,277 confirmed cases. 599 active clusters. 20 deaths. Kansas has 147,797 cases so far.


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## MarkinPhx

My oldest sister and her husband were going to Kansas to visit their daughter and her family back in July but had to postpone because at the time Arizona was having a high rate and Kansas had put restrictions on those visiting from here. So they went this week instead. No win situation. 3962 new cases in Arizona today which are approaching the numbers we had back in July.


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## MarciKS

We are beginning to blossom rapidly here. Topeka had to have the national guard come in and set up a field hospital in the parking lot. That's what will likely happen here.


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## Sunny

MarciKS said:


> We are beginning to blossom rapidly here. Topeka had to have the national guard come in and set up a field hospital in the parking lot. That's what will likely happen here.



Wow.


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## Aunt Bea

We've gone from the state-mandated yellow zone into the orange zone. 

The biggest impact is schools going to remote learning, the closing of indoor dining, and what are considered non-essential businesses like hair salons, fitness centers, etc...  I feel bad for the schools and small businesses that have to deal with little or no notice/guidance to the constant changes.

I thought that the Supreme Court striking down restrictions on the size of religious gatherings was interesting.  Some people seem to take that to mean that attending a large church service is safe.  I was happy to see the local religious leaders working together to dispel that notion and urge people to follow the accepted precautions including staying home until our numbers improve significantly.


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## MarciKS

Aunt Bea said:


> We've gone from the state-mandated yellow zone into the orange zone.
> 
> The biggest impact is schools going to remote learning, the closing of indoor dining, and what are considered non-essential businesses like hair salons, fitness centers, etc...  I feel bad for the schools and small businesses that have to deal with little or no notice/guidance to the constant changes.
> 
> I thought that the Supreme Court striking down restrictions on the size of religious gatherings was interesting.  Some people seem to take that to mean that attending a large church service is safe.  I was happy to see the local religious leaders working together to dispel that notion and urge people to follow the accepted precautions including staying home until our numbers improve significantly.


well for some reason our governor wants to keep everything open and just restrict gatherings to 15 and she's made the mask mandate a statewide thing BUT they still won't abide by it.


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## MarciKS

So our governor mandated the masks with or without the approval of the counties. Who will reinforce this? *Shrugs*

They are talking at work about calling in some freezer trucks here now. They said if things don't slow down we're going to have a field hospital in the parking lot in a matter of a few weeks. I think it will happen sooner because everywhere else is at capacity. Our morgue only holds 2. Things are starting to pick up more here. More coming into the ER every day. We have couriers running tests to the lab. Not sure where that is.


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## Jules

A field hospital - does that mean portables?


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## Butterfly

Here they have just opened up a hospital that had been closed for a while.  It is for the purpose of handling overflow covid cases, and particularly those which do not require ventilators and also to provide step down care for those recovering but not well enough to be discharged.  

After doing very well number wise for quite a while, things were partially opened up again and then cases went through the roof.


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## RadishRose

Jules said:


> A field hospital - does that mean portables?


I think so, like tents.


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## Kadee

Lots of celebrations in Australia with the Queensland border finally opening  at midnight
and some family’s / husbands / wives and children reuniting after 6 long months apart .

Most of Australia  is COVID free with just the odd case or two popping up in Adelaide however our government is right on to it as soon  as there is any sign of a possible outbreak ...We had a case a few days ago connected to a cluster in the northern suburbs of Adelaide right away there was clinics set up very close to the places the infected man had visited / shopped
so far so good no extra cases reported


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## MarciKS

Yes @Jules tents in the parking lot.

Sunday we had 6 deaths. Today 2 more are on their way out.


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## MarciKS

The total for the county is now 2,427, with 478 cases that are actively being monitored by the Health Department. Death toll is at 28.

Governor says we are in the red zone. Kansas is 12th highest in Covid cases right now.


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## Jules

MarciKS said:


> Yes @Jules tents in the parking lot.
> 
> Sunday we had 6 deaths. Today 2 more are on their way out.



OMG. Tents.  That breaks my heart.


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## MarciKS

Ours too. I was hoping we wouldn't get this bad. I'm more concerned than ever for my parents. Their city is already close to 500 cases and not many people live there. Like their population is around 2000.


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## MarciKS

The total for the county is now 2,786, with 830 cases that are actively being monitored by the Health Department. Death toll is 31.


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## MarciKS

(883) LIVE: Zuckerberg and Fauci Discuss Covid Prevention During the Holidays - YouTube


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## RiverM55

MarciKS said:


> The total for the county is now 2,786, with 830 cases that are actively being monitored by the Health Department. Death toll is 31.


Hope your stayin safe there girl.


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## PopsnTuff

Marci, is this the hospital you work in located in La Crosse?....I hope not  .... Kansas is all over the news, so so sad....please stay safe.

https://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory...ource_4380645_2_heads_hero_live_headlines_hed

Also this: https://salinapost.com/posts/0fb7df00-1ac3-4045-8a0c-12ad57e679c4


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## MarciKS

PopsnTuff said:


> Marci, is this the hospital you work in located in La Crosse?....I hope not  .... Kansas is all over the news, so so sad....please stay safe.
> 
> https://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory...ource_4380645_2_heads_hero_live_headlines_hed
> 
> Also this: https://salinapost.com/posts/0fb7df00-1ac3-4045-8a0c-12ad57e679c4


We are going to be in trouble here very soon.
The total for the county is now 2,921, with 962 cases that are actively being monitored by the Health Department. 34 dead.


We have the dumbest damn co-workers on the planet here at our hospital. Three...yes I said 3 employees came to work sick all last week and never told anyone they were sick and they had no fevers and now all three are out. 1 had a heart attack but she texted another gal saying she didn't know she had heart trouble. She thought it was just covid symptoms yet she came to work anyway and put us all at risk and didn't wear her mask. One is waiting test results and one has been at work with Covid for a WEEK. 

And all they did was tell her she shouldn't be there. Nobody made her mask up, nobody made her go home. Nobody made her get tested. So we've all been placed in jeopardy by 3 effing people who couldn't stay home. I told them today I think I have a sinus infection but I'm not 100% sure because I have no symptoms of Covid that I don't have every day. So they won't let me get tested unless I have symptoms. By then it will be too late. I'm so pissed tonight I just wanna scream but voice is getting rough from all the throat irritation.
We have 34 Covid patients right now.


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## Becky1951

https://www.osha.gov/SLTC/covid-19/standards.html

https://www.osha.gov/SLTC/covid-19/


Lessons Learned: Frequently Cited Standards Related to COVID-19 Inspections. (November 6, 2020).
Common COVID-19 Citations: Helping Employers Better Protect Workers and Comply with OSHA Regulations. (November 6, 2020).
COVID-19 Guidance on Ventilation in the Workplace (Spanish). (November 4, 2020).
Respiratory Protection in Long-Term Care Facilities. (October 30, 2020).
Understand how OSHA standards apply to protect workers from SARS-CoV-2.


Key OSHA standards for COVID-19
Enforcement discretion guidance
Enforcement directives
Workers’ rights and employers’ responsibilities


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## Murrmurr

MarciKS said:


> We are going to be in trouble here very soon.
> The total for the county is now 2,921, with 962 cases that are actively being monitored by the Health Department. 34 dead.
> 
> 
> We have the dumbest damn co-workers on the planet here at our hospital. Three...yes I said 3 employees came to work sick all last week and never told anyone they were sick and they had no fevers and now all three are out. 1 had a heart attack but she texted another gal saying she didn't know she had heart trouble. She thought it was just covid symptoms yet she came to work anyway and put us all at risk and didn't wear her mask. One is waiting test results and one has been at work with Covid for a WEEK.
> 
> And all they did was tell her she shouldn't be there. Nobody made her mask up, nobody made her go home. Nobody made her get tested. So we've all been placed in jeopardy by 3 effing people who couldn't stay home. I told them today I think I have a sinus infection but I'm not 100% sure because I have no symptoms of Covid that I don't have every day. So they won't let me get tested unless I have symptoms. By then it will be too late. I'm so pissed tonight I just wanna scream but voice is getting rough from all the throat irritation.
> We have 34 Covid patients right now.


*smacking my forehead* That is baffling.
All you can do is take care of yourself the best that you can. Seriously, I don't know what else to say (that won't get me censored).


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## MarciKS

I took matters into my own hands this morning and contacted our employee health nurse and we had a conversation about my sinus infection symptoms. We decided it was in my best interest to get tested since one of the workers I have more contact with tested positive. I don't want to make anyone else sick if I can avoid it. Plus I'd rather know now while they can still do something about it before it's too late.

I'm hoping since I stayed masked up all the time and distanced as best I could and tried to follow all the protocols that if I do get it, it will only be mild God willing.


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## Murrmurr

MarciKS said:


> I took matters into my own hands this morning and contacted our employee health nurse and we had a conversation about my sinus infection symptoms. We decided it was in my best interest to get tested since one of the workers I have more contact with tested positive. I don't want to make anyone else sick if I can avoid it. Plus I'd rather know now while they can still do something about it before it's too late.
> 
> I'm hoping since I stayed masked up all the time and distanced as best I could and tried to follow all the protocols that if I do get it, it will only be mild God willing.


My daughter(in-law) caught it fairly early on and was able to remain home until it passed. She had symptoms; fever, coughing, body aches and she said the headaches were the worst of it. After 2 weeks she was able to go back to work (tested neg), and felt just great after 3. I know three others who've had it and got over it. They say it was like a really bad flu. None of them have any lasting effects such as weakened lungs or anything like that. Again, that was early on and I've read from some experts that the virus is weakening. Let's hope so. (it does make sense)

Anyway, good move on your part, Marci.


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## MarciKS

Murrmurr said:


> My daughter(in-law) caught it fairly early on and was able to remain home until it passed. She had symptoms; fever, coughing, body aches and she said the headaches were the worst of it. After 2 weeks she was able to go back to work (tested neg), and felt just great after 3. I know three others who've had it and got over it. They say it was like a really bad flu. None of them have any lasting effects such as weakened lungs or anything like that. Again, that was early on and I've read from some experts that the virus is weakening. Let's hope so. (it does make sense)
> 
> Anyway, good move on your part, Marci.


We're getting told the virus is worse now than it was in March so I don't know what to believe. I just hope if I have it, it won't be bad enough to go to the hospital because if they vent me I don't think I'll be coming back out alive.


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## Aneeda72

Sunny said:


> What if the entire country was threatened by an enemy power?  The president is allowed, and in fact expected, to declare war, right?  So why can't we just consider this disease an "enemy," which it is?
> 
> In the case of human enemies, we wouldn't expect each individual governor to decide what to do about it, would we?


My reply might be consider political concerning a president so I can not answer in the way I want to, but no the governors would not have to individual response.  But, as with the individual groups of protestors, how they were treated was up to each governor.


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## Murrmurr

MarciKS said:


> We're getting told the virus is worse now than it was in March so I don't know what to believe. I just hope if I have it, it won't be bad enough to go to the hospital because if they vent me I don't think I'll be coming back out alive.


Yes, I've read conflicting articles about it but when I google the authors or contributors the ones who say it's weakening are more credible. But "weakening" doesn't mean less contagious, and they do still say the infirm elderly, diabetics, and people with compromised immune systems are still the most vulnerable and display the worst symptoms, but most everyone else is "getting a flu" in regards to symptoms and recovery.


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## MarciKS

Murrmurr said:


> Yes, I've read conflicting articles about it but when I google the authors or contributors the ones who say it's weakening are more credible. But "weakening" doesn't mean less contagious, and they do still say the infirm elderly, diabetics, and people with compromised immune systems are still the most vulnerable and display the worst symptoms, but most everyone else is "getting a flu" in regards to symptoms and recovery.


Like I said...if I have it hopefully my own precautions will make it less volatile for me.


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## Murrmurr

Sunny said:


> What if the entire country was threatened by an enemy power?  The president is allowed, and in fact expected, to declare war, right?  So why can't we just consider this disease an "enemy," which it is?
> 
> In the case of human enemies, we wouldn't expect each individual governor to decide what to do about it, would we?


In the case of this virus the president can declare a National Emergency, and I believe he did, however that president also stood behind each state's right to govern individually/independently.


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## MarciKS

Since we keep wandering close to political territory here I will resume posting my updates in my Diary.


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## Butterfly

MarciKS said:


> We are going to be in trouble here very soon.
> The total for the county is now 2,921, with 962 cases that are actively being monitored by the Health Department. 34 dead.
> 
> 
> We have the dumbest damn co-workers on the planet here at our hospital. Three...yes I said 3 employees came to work sick all last week and never told anyone they were sick and they had no fevers and now all three are out. 1 had a heart attack but she texted another gal saying she didn't know she had heart trouble. She thought it was just covid symptoms yet she came to work anyway and put us all at risk and didn't wear her mask. One is waiting test results and one has been at work with Covid for a WEEK.
> 
> And all they did was tell her she shouldn't be there. Nobody made her mask up, nobody made her go home. Nobody made her get tested. So we've all been placed in jeopardy by 3 effing people who couldn't stay home. I told them today I think I have a sinus infection but I'm not 100% sure because I have no symptoms of Covid that I don't have every day. So they won't let me get tested unless I have symptoms. By then it will be too late. I'm so pissed tonight I just wanna scream but voice is getting rough from all the throat irritation.
> We have 34 Covid patients right now.



Marci, besides the fact that your co-workers are dumb, I don't think your hospital management is very bright, either.  By not regulating people who come to work sick, they are running the risk of ending up with their whole hospital shut down because of covid spread, not to mention the risk of people dying.  

My heart goes out to you.


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## Jules

Butterfly said:


> My heart goes out to you.


Mine too.


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## Shalimar

Mine also.


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## PopsnTuff

@MarciKS is the vaccine gonna be available to you soon along with the medical staff? I really hope so...
and are you feeling any better from the sore throat and sinus issues you were having, if I recall correctly?


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## MarciKS

PopsnTuff said:


> @MarciKS is the vaccine gonna be available to you soon along with the medical staff? I really hope so...
> and are you feeling any better from the sore throat and sinus issues you were having, if I recall correctly?


I don't think we're gonna have one any time soon. There will only be 12,000 double doses coming in the first batch. I think with the warnings from Pfizer about not taking the vaccine if you have med allergies and the possibility of Bell's Palsy I'm gonna hafta pass. 

I am feeling somewhat better this evening. Just exhausted from all that's going on at work. We have a body in the morgue daily now.


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## PopsnTuff

Darn it all....and I just read about the Bell's Palsy in some of the trial patients....again, keep doin what you're doin to stay safe xo


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## MarciKS

PopsnTuff said:


> Darn it all....and I just read about the Bell's Palsy in some of the trial patients....again, keep doin what you're doin to stay safe xo


I'm doing my best. Thanks for your concern.


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