Lee Health

 

 

 

 

 

Daily Stats  (updated 5/1/2020 at 5:30 pm)

Lee Health has:

  • 87 COVID-19 patients isolated in our hospitals
  • Submitted 10,718 specimens for testing
  • Discharged 213 patients
  • 163 employees quarantined; 24 employees exposed at work and positive with COVID-19
  • Click here for graphs showing a running total of specimens collected for testing and positive cases hospitalized.

 

Today’s News

A Message from Dr. Larry Antonucci

As a community, we are approaching the two-month mark since COVID-19 made its first appearance in Southwest Florida. During this time, there have been and continue to be many challenges to our local economy, especially as restaurants, retail stores and businesses have had to close or significantly reduce their operations. Yet, on any given day, we receive around 30 calls from different local businesses that want to show their support for our teams on the frontlines. Just yesterday, Lee Health received 2,000 donated meals. These donations, this support and encouragement, and the way our local businesses have stepped up to help us during this time are truly awe-inspiring.

 

Now, as our local restaurants and businesses begin reopening, we hope that our friends, families and neighbors will support these establishment – in a social distancing way, of course. Visit www.LeeHealthStrong.org/donations to see a list of businesses that have generously donated time, energy, goods and resources throughout the COVID-19 outbreak.

 

We appreciate Southwest Florida’s continued support of Lee Health. We are your health system and have been for more than 100 years. It is our honor and privilege to safely and compassionately serve you and care for you today and for many years to come.

 

Phase One: Resuming Elective Surgeries and Reopening Facilities
Starting next week, Lee Health is resuming elective surgeries and reopening facilities. We are proceeding cautiously, and with surgeries, in particular, will limit procedures to 20-25% of normal volume as we monitor the impact on the health system. This measured approach is necessary and helps us ensure we have the personal protective equipment we need to keep our patients and employees safe.

 

Safety is paramount, and we have been preparing for the resumption of services by implementing additional layers of protection for our patients and staff. For example, every patient will be screened for symptoms of respiratory illness upon entering our facilities. We will be monitoring the health and exposure of our staff, as well. Additionally, all patients and staff will be required to wear protective face coverings. In our waiting areas, we are rearranging seating so that all chairs are positioned a safe distance from each other, and in our Lee Physician Group practice, patients have the option of waiting in their cars after check-in. We also will continue to keep COVID-19 patients, and those with symptoms of the virus, separate from all other patients.

 

To protect our most vulnerable patients, we will continue the current hospital and nursing home visitor restrictions, and our staff will continue utilizing technology to enable patients to connect with their loved ones.

 

Help Save Lives by Donating Blood
Lee Health Blood Center, along with the Florida Everblades, is hosting a mobile blood drive from 2-6 p.m., Saturday, May 8, at Hertz Arena. Having a well-stocked inventory of blood is crucial for our community, as blood helps patients heal from surgeries, diseases and traumatic injuries. The blood collection process is safe; we follow strict protocols to ensure the safety of the products, donors and staff. All donors will receive a “thank you” gift and a wellness checkup, including blood pressure, temperature, iron count and cholesterol screening.

Convenient Care – Metro Parkway Launches Virtual Visits
Convenient Care – Metro Parkway is offering virtual visits starting on Monday, May 4. The virtual visits will be available from 9 a.m.-5 p.m., Monday through Friday, and can be accessed through MyChart (for current patients with access) and Lee Telehealth (visit www.LeeHealth.org/our-services/telemedicine). Following the effective operation of virtual visits at the Metro location, the other offices will begin offering them, as well. More information about the implementation of virtual visits at our other Convenient Care locations will be shared as it is available.

A Note Regarding this COVID-19 Update
There will not be an update sent out this weekend. Look for the next COVID-19 Update to come out on Monday, May 4. Moving forward, this newsletter will be distributed Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays.

FDOH

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Florida Department of Health (Updated 5/1/2020 at 5:00 pm)
~33,829 positive cases in Florida residents and 899 positive cases in non-Florida residents~
TALLAHASSEE — The Florida Department of Health, in order to provide more comprehensive data, releases a report on COVID-19 cases in Florida once per day. The Florida Department of Health COVID-19 dashboard is also providing updates once per day. The state also provides a report detailing surveillance data for every Florida county. Previously, this information was only available for select communities. The surveillance data report is available here.
More than 21,000 test results were reported to the Department of Health on Thursday, April 30 – the second highest number since testing began. Today, as of 11 a.m., there are 1,038 new positive COVID-19 cases (1,028 Florida residents and 10 non-Florida residents) and forty-six deaths related to COVID-19. This increase in cases corresponds to the increase in tests reported, and on April 30, five percent of new cases** tested positive. Overall, the percent of those testing positive for COVID-19 overall is 9 percent.
The Florida Department of Health also releases a list of long-term care facilities in Florida associated with COVID-19 cases with active cases and number of deaths in each facility in order to provide real-time data. The list of long-term care facilities with active COVID-19 cases is available here.  To date, 444 individuals that were staff or residents of a long-term care facility have died.
There are a total of 34,728 Florida cases** with 1,314 deaths related to COVID-19.
Since 11 a.m. on April 30, forty-six people have died who tested positive for COVID-19 Broward, Charlotte, Dade, Hillsborough, Lake, Palm Beach, Pasco, Pinellas, Polk and Sarasota in counties.
Florida recently partnered with private laboratories around the state to expand COVID-19 laboratory testing capacity. This partnership will increase the number of tests conducted each day and ensure Floridians receive the critical health information they need in a timely manner.
Expansion to private laboratories changes the COVID-19 testing landscape in Florida. Private laboratories are running tests as they receive swab samples from practitioners. Testing and reporting times vary among commercial and DOH laboratories. Demographic information may be updated during investigations. These twice daily reports reflect the state’s efforts to accurately and transparently share information.

World Health Orga

 

 

 

 

 

World Health Organization Update

SITUATION IN NUMBERS total (new) cases in last 24 hours 

(last updated 10:00 AM CET 5/1/2020)

Globally 3 175 207 cases (84 771)
224 172 deaths (6403)
Western Pacific Region 148 838 cases (1095)
6127 deaths (33)
European Region 1 461 404 cases(26764)
138 200 deaths (2239)
South-East Asia Region 57 088 cases(3067)
2174 deaths (86)
Eastern Mediterranean Region 188 585 cases (6168)
7598 deaths (151)
Region of the Americas 1 291 917 cases (45 727)
69 087 deaths (3859)
African Region 26 663 cases (1950)
973 deaths (35)
Highlights
  • Two new Member States(Comoros and Tajikistan) reported cases of COVID-19 in the past 24 hours.
  • The third meeting of the Emergency Committee was convened by the WHO Director-General under the
    International Health Regulations (2005) (IHR) regarding COVID-19.
  • The WHO Regional Director for Europe, Dr. Hans Henri P. Kluge mentioned that “we will defeat COVID19 by disseminating knowledge in all transparency, by personalized support in the field and by unfailing solidarity”. In another statement, he emphasized that “we cannot allow the impact of COVID19 to be amplified by neglecting other vital health protection measures”.
  • The WHO Regional Office for the Americas urged health authorities to take specific steps to protect
    health care workers and communities during essential immunization activities throughout the COVID19 pandemic.
  • WHO virtually convened vaccine manufacturers and national regulatory authorities from its SouthEast Asia Region to discuss COVID-19 vaccines.
    In the Subject in Focus below, we describe WHO’s work to ensure that shipping and seafarers can
    continue to deliver vital goods, including medical supplies and food during the COVID-19 pandemic

Subject in focus

  • Partnership coordination to facilitate ship movements during COVID-19, including the issuance of Ship
    Sanitation Certificates
  • On April 22, 2020 the Directors-General of the World Health Organization (WHO) and the
    International Labour Organization (ILO) and the Secretary-General of the International Maritime
    Organization (IMO) issued a joint statement on medical certificates of seafarers, ship sanitation
    certificates and medical care of seafarers in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. WHO, IMO
    and the ILO, in cooperation with international seafarers’ and ship-owners’ organizations, are
    working together to ensure the ability of shipping and seafarers to continue to deliver vital goods,
    including medical supplies and food.
  • In the statement, the three organizations strongly encourage governments to facilitate ship
    movements, including docking, crew changes, ship inspection and the issuance of Ship Sanitation
    Certificates (SSCs) during the COVID-19 pandemic.
  • Under the framework of the International Health Regulations (IHR) (2005), State Parties are
    required to authorize ports to conduct ship inspections and issue Ship Sanitation Certificates, as
    well as to provide the services referred to in Annex 1 of the IHR, which expands on an important set
    of core capacities for points of entry. The scope of the application of SSCs is delineated in the WHO
    Handbook for inspection of ships and issuance of ship sanitation certificates. A ship without a valid
    SSC (e.g. carrying an expired SSC) is considered an ‘affected’ ship and is subject to health
    measures, as deemed necessary by the health authorities, to prevent the spread of diseases.
  • The SSCs are valid for a maximum period of six months and this period may be extended by one
    month if the inspection or control measures required cannot be accomplished at the port.
    However, in the current situation, renewals of SSCs may not be possible at ports due to port
    closures and other restriction measures put in place by countries. This in turn could impede the
    movement of ships as ships without SSCs are considered ‘affected’. To facilitate the renewal of
    ship sanitation certificates and prevent unnecessary interference to international maritime traffic,
    extraordinary temporary measures have been introduced. These are referred to in the joint
    statement with regard to the renewal of SSCs, as well as ship inspections, and protective
    measures against COVID-19.