Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Health Care Providers On Front Lines And Their Families Grapple With Grim Reality That They Might Get Infected
Stat: ‘It’s Been Kind Of Rough’: At The Epicenter Of The Pandemic, A Seattle ICU Nurse Treats Two Patients At A Time
Stephanie Bandyk is on the front lines of the Covid-19 pandemic: A registered nurse who works in the intensive care unit of Seattle’s Swedish Hospital, she has helped treat some of the earliest patients infected with the novel coronavirus in the U.S. She has been working overnight shifts, from 7 p.m. to 7:30 a.m. in the state hardest hit by the new disease. There have been more than 1,000 cases of Covid-19 reported in Washington state, and at least 52 deaths. (Keshavan, 3/18)
The Washington Post: ‘Dad, Are You Okay?’: Doctors And Nurses Fighting Pandemic Fear Infecting Their Families
It is a grim sentiment shared by thousands of health care workers on the front line of a pandemic that is expected to deluge the nation’s hospitals with new patients in the coming weeks. The people treating them understand what that means. They have read the stories from Italy, about doctors dying. They have heard of the findings from Wuhan, China, where nearly 1 in 5 health workers who caught the virus ended up in severe or critical condition. In the United States, where everyday activities have almost skidded to a halt, the virus has upended the lives of doctors and nurses more than anyone else. (Cox, Miller and Jamison, 3/18)
Kaiser Health News: A View From The Front Lines Of California’s COVID-19 Battle
On Tuesday, Dr. Jeanne Noble devoted time between patient visits to hanging clear 2-gallon plastic bags at each of her colleagues’ workstations. Noble is a professor of emergency medicine and director of the UC-San Francisco medical center response to the novel coronavirus that has permeated California and reached into every U.S. state. The bags were there to hold personal protective equipment ¬— the masks, face shields, gowns and other items that health care providers rely on every day to protect themselves from the viruses shed by patients, largely through coughs and sneezes. (Barry-Jester, 3/18)
ProPublica: Congress Passed $8.3 Billion In Emergency Coronavirus Funding, But First Responders Still Can’t Buy Masks
The Coronavirus Preparedness and Response Supplemental Appropriations Act, which became law March 6, only invests $10 million for “training” of first responders, money they will have to share with hospital employees and other health care workers. “I think we know how to put our protective gear on,” said Gary Ludwig, chief of the Champaign Fire Department in Illinois, calling that part of the bill “ridiculous.” “They don’t need to teach us that,” said Ludwig, who is also president of the International Association of Fire Chiefs. “We need more stuff, is what we need.” (Allen, Sapien and Sanders, 3/18)
The Washington Post: 73 D.C. Firefighters And First Responders Under Quarantine, Union Says
A second D.C. firefighter has tested positive for the novel coronavirus, and officials are tracing that person’s contacts with colleagues and community members, the fire department announced Wednesday night. In total, 73 city firefighters, paramedics and emergency medical technicians have self-quarantined after exposure or potential exposure to the virus, according to the president of the firefighters union. (Hermann, 3/18)
WBUR: Health Care Workers Struggle To Balance Work And Child Care
The closure of schools and daycares across Massachusetts has forced many parents to reorganize their lives around child care. For doctors and other people on the front lines of the fight against the coronavirus, there’s an additional concern: how to protect their families from being infected. (Rios and Mullins, 3/18)
