Direct Line from Steve Edwards: 8/6/21

Aug. 6, 2021

COVID-19 update

Shortly after Direct Line was sent last Friday, we hit a new tragic high: 187 patients with COVID-19 were in our hospitals. This number is around 17 patients higher than our surge last winter.

The number has softened some over the past week, but remains very high. We currently have 174 COVID patients currently admitted across the system. We have tragically also seen 27 more deaths over the last week alone.

Around 95% of our patients hospitalized for COVID pneumonia are unvaccinated.

As patient numbers remain high, we are grateful that a team of physicians, nurse practitioners and paramedics arrived at Cox South this morning to help through federal disaster relief. They will be here with us for 30 days to care for COVID patients, and we are greatly appreciate the additional hands and hearts to help.

Many have asked about the status of mandatory vaccinations for employees. They are not required at this moment, and we are still led by the EUA, which we believe may be removed soon. However, we recognize that with the emergence of the delta variant there must be even greater urgency in our actions, and we must continue to accelerate our vaccination rate. We are preparing to announce more specific plans in the very near future, but in the meantime, we are pleased that we have a higher vaccination rate than the majority of hospitals in Missouri we have consulted, and believe our strategy behind education and incentives is driving success. We have also continued to strictly adhere to CDC safety guidelines to assure the safest possible environment for care.

Numbers show the seriousness of this situation, but what may be even more impactful are the words of people dealing with this crisis on the frontlines. I want to share two perspectives with you. One is an article about Casey Sample, a nurse in our COVID-19 ICU, whose career as a nurse began shortly before the pandemic. She recounts what the experience has been like, and why she encourages everyone to take things seriously, and get vaccinated.

The other features words from Dr. Kimberly Rengel, an anesthesiologist at Vanderbilt. She has deep ties with us, as her mother and step-father are Faith and Rod Schaffer of our CoxHealth family, and we felt her words might be meaningful to share.

Infusion Center expansion in Hulston

We announced the new $3.2 million infusion center in Hulston Cancer Center this week, and are already looking forward to it being complete in the coming months. Work is progressing rapidly on this new space, which dramatically increases our capacity to serve patients. Thanks to the CoxHealth Foundation for raising community support for the project, which is currently around $800,000 of a $1 million goal. For more info about the project, click here.

New physicians

We are happy to share that we have eight new physicians who have recently joined CoxHealth. They represent a wide variety of specialties, including Rheumatology, Family Medicine, Occupational Medicine, Pulmonology and Critical Care, Anesthesiology, Urgent care and Emergency Medicine.

Voice of the Patient

Patient feedback from Springfield: “The care given to me after a complete hip replacement was excellent. I could not have been more satisfied. The nurses and staff did all they could to make my stay the best experience possible.”

Thank you for all you do,
Steve