Are you expecting financial hardship soon because of the Corona Virus?

[Flex500]

I'm in a position where I manage a division of hundreds of front line healthcare workers all over the US in some of the largest hospitals in the country. All of mine are in orthopedic elective sx's and procedures/sports med/ortho trauma settings so we've worked closely with various systems on how to handle orthopedic issues in conjunction with them prepping for covid.

I'll tell you what is interesting...opinions have varied greatly across the country from each institutions overall strategy and expectations to the individual physicians. I have people in areas of MI and KY where there have been more deaths due to suicide (related to covid) than there are actually from covid itself. Some of that, of course, is dumb luck combined with social distancing, etc.

I will tell you this...overall PPE availability has been "ok". Much of the issue is/was places hoarding it and you can understand because if their system became overloaded they don't want to be caught without PPE, ventilators, or other equipment. A hospital in OH was hoarding equipment because they estimated going through 157,000 masks a day at peak. We are past the peak in OH and they are going through 20,000 a day at the peak.

Some areas are starting to perform non emergency/elective surgeries, because, quite frankly, there isn't much going on and they have stockpiled more equipment than they will ever need. I have employees that have contracted COVID (actually test positive I'm not talking 'presumed positive') and all are doing really well. I expect many, many will will contract it on my team.

PS: none of the above is meant to downplay the virus. My family and I are on lockdown and I have an extreme sense of guilt that I'm not "in the muck" with the division I manage who are all out there taking are of patients.

Stay healthy everyone.

 

[maldorf]

I'm in a position where I manage a division of hundreds of front line healthcare workers all over the US in some of the largest hospitals in the country. All of mine are in orthopedic elective sx's and procedures/sports med/ortho trauma settings so we've worked closely with various systems on how to handle orthopedic issues in conjunction with them prepping for covid.

I'll tell you what is interesting...opinions have varied greatly across the country from each institutions overall strategy and expectations to the individual physicians. I have people in areas of MI and KY where there have been more deaths due to suicide (related to covid) than there are actually from covid itself. Some of that, of course, is dumb luck combined with social distancing, etc.

I will tell you this...overall PPE availability has been "ok". Much of the issue is/was places hoarding it and you can understand because if their system became overloaded they don't want to be caught without PPE, ventilators, or other equipment. A hospital in OH was hoarding equipment because they estimated going through 157,000 masks a day at peak. We are past the peak in OH and they are going through 20,000 a day at the peak.

Some areas are starting to perform non emergency/elective surgeries, because, quite frankly, there isn't much going on and they have stockpiled more equipment than they will ever need. I have employees that have contracted COVID (actually test positive I'm not talking 'presumed positive') and all are doing really well. I expect many, many will will contract it on my team.

PS: none of the above is meant to downplay the virus. My family and I are on lockdown and I have an extreme sense of guilt that I'm not "in the muck" with the division I manage who are all out there taking are of patients.

Stay healthy everyone.

Is there any talk about what a resurgence of the virus might look like later this year? I'm wondering how the peak deaths on that would compare to the one we just went through, or for some states about to enter.
Has anyone talked about the specifics of the suicides? Can any of them be directly contributed to the virus? Maybe the people left a suicide note or possibly they were infected and committed the act because they felt as if they were going to die anyhow? This is one area we hear nothing of. I wonder about countries like China and Italy that got hit really hard.

 

[muscle96ss]

A guy I work with got his Monday. I know “get it in ya” said he got his as well

I think he was referring to the unemployment extra $600 and I think "get it in ya" was referring to the stimulus check. I received the stimulus today.

 

[Flex500]

Is there any talk about what a resurgence of the virus might look like later this year? I'm wondering how the peak deaths on that would compare to the one we just went through, or for some states about to enter.
Has anyone talked about the specifics of the suicides? Can any of them be directly contributed to the virus? Maybe the people left a suicide note or possibly they were infected and committed the act because they felt as if they were going to die anyhow? This is one area we hear nothing of. I wonder about countries like China and Italy that got hit really hard.

To be honest I'm too detached from that side of it. Overall I work with orthopedic surgeons who have all pretty much stopped operating (outside of urgent/trauma) and what we are doing, and what their hospitals are doing is making sure they get get these elective surgeries going and get these surgeons operating while also being able to manage a covid spike. Most feel that with some level of social distancing that will continue they will be able to handle the uptick while also starting up elective surgeries. Many of these elective surgeries need done they are not merely cosmetic so these hospitals, generally, feel prepared they have the resources to run AND take care of COVID patients. I'm so deep in the ortho side I don't hear much behind PPE conversations as it directly relates to covid.

Side note...a few of my team are taking the malaria drug as a prophylactic in the same manner someone started a thread about. I didn't read that whole thread but his dosing protocol is exactly what my team and the docs in long island are taking.

 

[j4ever]

To be honest I'm too detached from that side of it. Overall I work with orthopedic surgeons who have all pretty much stopped operating (outside of urgent/trauma) and what we are doing, and what their hospitals are doing is making sure they get get these elective surgeries going and get these surgeons operating while also being able to manage a covid spike. Most feel that with some level of social distancing that will continue they will be able to handle the uptick while also starting up elective surgeries. Many of these elective surgeries need done they are not merely cosmetic so these hospitals, generally, feel prepared they have the resources to run AND take care of COVID patients. I'm so deep in the ortho side I don't hear much behind PPE conversations as it directly relates to covid.

Side note...a few of my team are taking the malaria drug as a prophylactic in the same manner someone started a thread about. I didn't read that whole thread but his dosing protocol is exactly what my team and the docs in long island are taking.

thats the thing, for the person that needs it i bet they do not consider it elective, they deserve to be cared for as well, i have been on that side of things before, in Feb i had a revision of a THA done in 2003, i have a depuy pinnacle cup and summit stem, i had a m/m and developed metallosis and had a fairly large psuedo tumor, shell liner changed to xlink poly, ball changed to ceramic, after beating the total shit out of this thing for 17 years the shell and stem are still well grown in.

 

[muscle96ss]

To be honest I'm too detached from that side of it. Overall I work with orthopedic surgeons who have all pretty much stopped operating (outside of urgent/trauma) and what we are doing, and what their hospitals are doing is making sure they get get these elective surgeries going and get these surgeons operating while also being able to manage a covid spike. Most feel that with some level of social distancing that will continue they will be able to handle the uptick while also starting up elective surgeries. Many of these elective surgeries need done they are not merely cosmetic so these hospitals, generally, feel prepared they have the resources to run AND take care of COVID patients. I'm so deep in the ortho side I don't hear much behind PPE conversations as it directly relates to covid.

Side note...a few of my team are taking the malaria drug as a prophylactic in the same manner someone started a thread about. I didn't read that whole thread but his dosing protocol is exactly what my team and the docs in long island are taking.

Its seems like a lot of the people in the medical field are doing this. I don't understand why we don't do the same for the people in this country that are high-risk due to age or medical conditions. If our goal is to save live's; I would imagine we could do a lot of good and it just seems logical.

 

[maldorf]

Its seems like a lot of the people in the medical field are doing this. I don't understand why we don't do the same for the people in this country that are high-risk due to age or medical conditions. If our goal is to save live's; I would imagine we could do a lot of good and it just seems logical.

Do we know how long the treatment can go on? Can they do it for months and months, a year?

It probably won't be good for me since I have heart arrhythmia problems, but maybe my meds could suppress that I dont know.

The sides can be significant, at least for treatment when you're sick, but prophylactic treatment uses lower doses.

 

[DK0223]

I think he was referring to the unemployment extra $600 and I think "get it in ya" was referring to the stimulus check. I received the stimulus today.

No GIIY said he got his extra 600 last week, and i received my stimulus today as well. I haven’t received my extra 600/wk in UE yet is what i was referring to. My apologies if I was confusing lol

 

[maldorf]

No GIIY said he got his extra 600 last week, and i received my stimulus today as wel. I haven’t received my extra 600/wk in UE yet is what i was referring to. My apologies if I was confusing lol

Is that extra $600 going to be part of your regular unemployment, or a separate "check" on a different day I wonder? Maybe you'll get your's on your next one. Do those come bimonthly?

 

[muscle96ss]

Do we know how long the treatment can go on? Can they do it for months and months, a year?

It probably won't be good for me since I have heart arrhythmia problems, but maybe my meds could suppress that I dont know.

The sides can be significant, at least for treatment when you're sick, but prophylactic treatment uses lower doses.

Prophylaxis is 400mg taken 1 time per week I believe; which is an incredibly low dosage compared to the same amount daily for treatment. And without the z-pack, arrhythmia is less of a concern, but I would still discuss with it a doctor who knows your full med history.

 

[maldorf]

Prophylaxis is 400mg taken 1 time per week I believe; which is an incredibly low dosage compared to the same amount daily for treatment. And without the z-pack, arrhythmia is less of a concern, but I would still discuss with it a doctor who knows your full med history.

Do you know how folks with medical conditions treated with it now take it? Several conditions like lupus require it.

 

[muscle96ss]

Do you know how folks with medical conditions treated with it now take it? Several conditions like lupus require it.

Hydroxychloroquine Dosage Guide + Max Dose, Adjustments - Drugs.com

Detailed Hydroxychloroquine dosage information for adults and children. Includes dosages for Rheumatoid Arthritis, Systemic Lupus Erythematosus, Malaria Prophylaxis and more; plus renal, liver and dialysis adjustments.

www.drugs.com

 

[maldorf]

Hydroxychloroquine Dosage Guide + Max Dose, Adjustments - Drugs.com

Detailed Hydroxychloroquine dosage information for adults and children. Includes dosages for Rheumatoid Arthritis, Systemic Lupus Erythematosus, Malaria Prophylaxis and more; plus renal, liver and dialysis adjustments.

www.drugs.com

Says for lupus it is 200 to 400 mg a day for maintenance. That's promising that they can tolerate it.

 

[DK0223]

Is that extra $600 going to be part of your regular unemployment, or a separate "check" on a different day I wonder? Maybe you'll get your's on your next one. Do those come bimonthly?

I believe it’s a separate deposit, that’s what I’ve heard. They come every week I believe?

 

[muscle96ss]

Says for lupus it is 200 to 400 mg a day for maintenance. That's promising that they can tolerate it.

There was a story on the news last week about a doctor with the largest lupus practice in the US of roughly 2000 patients on the drug; and he said in his 30 years of practice he has never had a single patient admitted to the hospital with a complication from the drug. He also said that none of his patients currently on the drug had tested positive for covid yet.

 

[maldorf]

There was a story on the news last week about a doctor with the largest lupus practice in the US of roughly 2000 patients on the drug; and he said in his 30 years of practice he has never had a single patient admitted to the hospital with a complication from the drug. He also said that none of his patients currently on the drug had tested positive for covid yet.

Gives me hope that medical workers can be safe. I dont know what I might do in the future. There's no way I can keep this up for another year. Eventually I'm going to go out before that.

 

[Flex500]

thats the thing, for the person that needs it i bet they do not consider it elective, they deserve to be cared for as well, i have been on that side of things before, in Feb i had a revision of a THA done in 2003, i have a depuy pinnacle cup and summit stem, i had a m/m and developed metallosis and had a fairly large psuedo tumor, shell liner changed to xlink poly, ball changed to ceramic, after beating the total shit out of this thing for 17 years the shell and stem are still well grown in.

BINGO! A lot of the things we do and the patients we care for are getting elective surgeries that aren't all that elective if it's you! Right on with that. You are a prime example of this! Wish the best for you man.

 

[Flex500]

Its seems like a lot of the people in the medical field are doing this. I don't understand why we don't do the same for the people in this country that are high-risk due to age or medical conditions. If our goal is to save live's; I would imagine we could do a lot of good and it just seems logical.

I honestly don't know enough from the medical side and wouldn't want to speak of out place on something I don't know enough about. In our specific case it was people in long island who are really in the middle of the craziness. Many of the docs there went from not believing in it to being big time believers. Other areas of the country they are very skeptical still.

Frankly, I just don't know enough about the drug to have a strong opinion. We are not requiring or asking our team to take it but they are allowed to if they want to.

 

[austrianoak]

Yes, there was an error there. The amount is between 20 and 25% usually, each year is different because the voluntary amount we give varies. There is assessed contribution then the voluntary which is 80% of the budget. I think that's where I got the figure.
The US gives more than any other country. China on the other hand gives very little. That's a bit frustrating when you consider China has the world's 2nd LARGEST GDP.

The U.S. Government and the World Health Organization | KFF

This fact sheet shares information about the World Health Organization (WHO) and U.S. government funding and engagement with WHO.

www.kff.org

I wasn't able to read those documents because I'm stuck on this little phone, but the article above shows we give about 20% or so.

"The United States is the WHO's largest single donor, and the State Department had previously planned to provide the agency $893 million in the current two-year funding period. Trump said the United States contributes roughly $400 to $500 million per year to WHO, while China offers only about $40 million. The money saved will go to areas that "most need it," Trump asserted."

I dont support the US withdrawing permanently. Changes at the organization need to be made though so this doesn't happen again. The WHO failed badly here. Once changes are made then the US should step up and continue their contribution.

Absolutely, I didn’t consider to look into voluntary funds - my fault, sorry!

 

[maldorf]

Absolutely, I didn’t consider to look into voluntary funds - my fault, sorry!

Even with the voluntary budget, the US contribution is still about 20% or so of their total budget. It's just that I think I saw that number yesterday and got confused. Too many stats!

I hope that the WHO makes some personnel and policy changes so we can join in again.