Things are escalating very quickly, and it’s sad.
This week I participated in an hour-long video meeting that featured physicians and hospital leaders from around the state of Missouri. The looks of sadness on their faces made a tremendous impact on me. The Delta variant of COVID-19 is spreading rapidly in a number of areas around Missouri, and the growth in cases they observed this spring has now translated into increased hospitalizations, ICU days and deaths. In Southwest M...issouri, COVID-related hospital demand has risen in seven weeks to a level that took seven months to reach last year. Predictive models do not think we have hit the peak down there…it’s still getting worse. We have definitive proof that Delta is here in Gentry and Worth counties, also, and case growth is happening here like it happened in Springfield over the past two months. We have reason to believe that we’re headed for a COVID spike that is worse than any we’ve seen so far in this region. I hope we aren’t.
Just three short months ago, our caregivers got to celebrate a day that there were no COVID inpatients in any Mosaic hospital. Two months ago, I wrote in this column that I would encourage people to get vaccinated to help slow down a storm that had decimated India and seemed to be building in the distance in the US. We had eight COVID inpatients at that time, including two in the ICU. As of Tuesday, July 13, Mosaic has over 50 COVID inpatients, including an otherwise-healthy 29-year-old who is on a ventilator and several others who are otherwise young and healthy. The video meeting I just watched was full of stories about Missouri residents in their 20’s, 30’s and 40’s who did not get vaccinated and now are dying or dealing with a life-threatening illness that spreads much easier and often hits much harder than the COVID we worked so hard to manage last year.
I have chosen to be vaccinated against COVID-19, as have all the eligible members of my immediate family. I understand and respect that many people have done their own mental math and have decided not to be vaccinated, and I have not pressured anyone to take the vaccine. I am not trying to pressure anyone today, either. I do want to let you know that I truly believe deep down that the presence of this Delta variant has changed the “mental math” risk calculation that thoughtful people have been doing and that I hope people will strongly consider vaccination and other means of protecting themselves in the days and weeks ahead.
While the vaccines may not provide 100% protection against “getting COVID,” the emerging science on this issue from around the world makes it very clear that they do provide significant protection against getting it AND they are very successful in reducing the severity of the disease among those who do. Several providers in our area (like Mosaic, Tri-County Public Health and many of our area pharmacies) still have supplies of the COVID vaccines and are ready to serve you. As we see spikes among our youth and are starting to think seriously about returning to school next month, it remains noteworthy that eligibility for the Pfizer vaccine has been extended to include individuals 12 years of age and up. If you are interested in receiving the Pfizer vaccine, you could call (660) 726-3333 to schedule an appointment at Mosaic Family Care – Albany, call Tri-County at (660) 783-2707 or visit a pharmacy that has it in stock.
I have loved the relative calm of the past three months, and I do not want to see a return of COVID-19 in a form that is even more transmissible and dangerous. I saw the faces of colleagues that are dealing with it, and I feel the need to share that with you. Please stay safe and take care of each other out there.
~~ Jon Doolittle, President