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Today’s must-read

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Illinois

* Katlyn Smith at the Daily Herald talked to several suburban medical professionals and put together a really strong story about what’s going on. It’s not nearly as long as our usual “must-reads,” but it’s no less important…

As Illinois sets another single-day record for COVID-19 infections, hospitals are preparing to feel the strain of a fall and winter surge after weeks of steadily rising patient numbers.

Some medical centers are tightening visitor restrictions. Hospital administrators are hoping they won’t have to postpone elective surgeries again. But national trends are leaving suburban hospital officials anxious.

“I am extremely worried about staff,” said Dr. Sanjeeb Khatua, chief physician executive and COVID-19 incident commander at Edward-Elmhurst Health.

Again, go read the whole thing.

* Related…

* Southern Illinois Healthcare loses one of its own front-line employees to COVID-19 as hospitalizations increase: Within days, her health rapidly declined. Her lungs collapsed and were bleeding, her liver enlarged, her kidneys shut down and she went into respiratory arrest, according to her best friend, Dottie Nikolich, of Christopher. “She suffered greatly with this,” Nikolich said.

* Dr. Anthony Fauci warns US faces ‘a whole lot of hurt’ this winter due to surging COVID-19 cases

* October Coronavirus Cases Climb In Oak Lawn - COVID-19 cases are beginning to surge in parts of suburban Cook County as the state initiates further precautions to help stop the spread.

posted by Rich Miller
Monday, Nov 2, 20 @ 3:26 am

Comments

“She suffered greatly with this” “I am extremely worried about staff,”

It doesn’t matter who gets elected were going into a nightmare winter.

Comment by The Dude Monday, Nov 2, 20 @ 6:05 am
Elections matter.

Comment by Cheryl44 Monday, Nov 2, 20 @ 9:04 am
Neither candidate has been asked what there move going forward is going to be . The media should avoid any more nonsense about Russia , hunter etc etc.How are these trials going to be administered when a vaccine seems promising

Comment by 14th ward Monday, Nov 2, 20 @ 9:17 am
Does anyone know why the Governor announced the mitigation event three days before actual implementation, and going into a weekend?

It created a “Fat Tuesday” atmosphere at most bars and restaurants.

Comment by chicago hope Monday, Nov 2, 20 @ 10:04 am
chicago hope,

They did the same in Germany and other parts of Europe with the same effect. Basically, you are dealing with adult citizens and not child subjects so you have to give them some notification to get what they need done and stock up on food etc before the mitigations hit.

Comment by cermak_rd Monday, Nov 2, 20 @ 10:08 am
WCIA is reporting 11 of 253 state employees at McFarland Mental Health Center in Springfield have tested positive. As well as 10 of 122 psychiatric patients living there. But AFSCME is charging that DHS management is doing nothing to help curb and control the spread of the virus in the facility:

https://www.wcia.com/health/coronavirus/coronavirus-outbreak-overwhelms-staff-at-state-run-psychiatric-facility/

If there actually is another stay-at-home order this winter, is it just me or does anyone else think that state employees will this time still be expected to come to work daily? And not get tested at work for COVID (so they’d have to go elsewhere for a test and then quarantine until they get the results)? Methinks if another shelter in place happens those agencies who have already sent back their employees will still be asking them to come to work.

Comment by Chatham Resident Monday, Nov 2, 20 @ 10:10 am
“have to give them some notification to get what they need done and stock up on food etc before the mitigations hit”

Wait. Are they closing supermarkets, as well? I thought this only applied to bars and restaurants.

Comment by chicago hope Monday, Nov 2, 20 @ 10:26 am
===I thought this only applied to bars and restaurants.===

It does. Your observations are on point.

Comment by Cubs in '16 Monday, Nov 2, 20 @ 10:30 am
“Does anyone know why the Governor announced the mitigation event three days before actual implementation, and going into a weekend?”

The heads-up was so that bars and restaurants didn’t get placed in an even worse financial position by stocking-up immediately before mitigation took place.

Those businesses are going to have a hard enough time without being stuck with a cooler full of food and beverages that they can’t sell.

– MrJM

Comment by @misterjayem Monday, Nov 2, 20 @ 10:49 am
I find it strange that they say they are worried for their staff but their staff keeps engaging in activities that are very risky. Doesn’t it come to a point when employers have to be more than worried? What happens when the whole staff is out?

Comment by Publius Monday, Nov 2, 20 @ 10:52 am
To the post: I have a friend who works in a hospital in one of the states hit hardest by covid.

“Beds aren’t the problem,” he told me. “Staffing the beds is the problem. If you don’t have the people to staff the bed, you don’t have a bed. And we don’t have the people to staff these beds.”

That’s because covid beds are “overstaffed.” When you’re assigned to a covid bed, that’s your only task. You stay with that patient because that patient is literally dying. You don’t bounce from room to room covering for staff shortages because you’re dealing with a highly contagious pathogen.

My pal is literally an Iron Man triathlete — I’ve never known anyone in better shape — but going full speed, all day, every day for eight months is grinding him down. It’s grinding them all down.

Something’s gotta give.

– MrJM

Comment by @misterjayem Monday, Nov 2, 20 @ 11:02 am
Decatur hospitals began restricting visitor access this weekend because of infection spread.

https://herald-review.com/news/local/public_safety/visitors-restricted-from-entering-decatur-hospitals-4-covid-cases-reported-at-pana-hospital/article_1441d52d-76fd-5928-ae17-cdec53440b98.html

Comment by Leigh John-Ella Monday, Nov 2, 20 @ 11:07 am
It will start to look like what happened in Italy back in the spring. You know it’s bad when they call out the Carabinieri to enforce the rules. If they called out the Military Police in the US to enforce all this everyone would start paying attention.

Comment by Publius Monday, Nov 2, 20 @ 11:08 am
While no one wants to die, based on the Friday numbers only .08% of Il citizens have died during this illness. Based on averages, there have been about 33000 abortions compared to the 10000 covid deaths.

Comment by Techman Monday, Nov 2, 20 @ 11:20 am
So, when COVID persists beyond the election, what will the folks say who believed it would disappear after November 3rd? Will they finally take it seriously? Will they accept mitigation efforts intended to control the spread?

Comment by OK Boomer Monday, Nov 2, 20 @ 11:25 am
I don’t see the connection between abortions and covid, well I see one connection. Being pregnant is a risk factor for Covid complications so some may have chosen termination to avoid that. Had we handled the virus better people would not have been forced into that situation.

Comment by cermak_rd Monday, Nov 2, 20 @ 11:37 am
== So, when COVID persists beyond the election, what will the folks say who believed it would disappear after November 3rd? Will they finally take it seriously? Will they accept mitigation efforts intended to control the spread?==

Unfortunately no. The people who believe it’s a minor illness and being politicized will continue to believe that on Nov 4. In fact, they will double down on believing what they read on social media and alternative facts websites. They will continue to refuse to believe the main stream media and the sources that are verified as being truthful.
Their reality will not change until deaths occur in their family to young healthy relatives. Even then some will just shrug it off as being the way things happen.

Comment by thoughts matter Monday, Nov 2, 20 @ 11:38 am
@ Techman: after you have finished slapping yourself on the back, please report to the principal’s office to collect your sophist debating prize - and then return to Facebook.

Comment by Moe Berg Monday, Nov 2, 20 @ 11:38 am
Read Chicagosuburbanland.com the village of Orland Park is spiking with COVID-19. That’s the same Mayor who last week went on Fox in Chicago and said the Governor doesn’t know what he’s talking about. He’s also on record as saying Orland Park won’t enforce any of the Governors orders regarding lock downs.

Comment by Hard D Monday, Nov 2, 20 @ 11:51 am
==So, when COVID persists beyond the election, what will the folks say who believed it would disappear after November 3rd? Will they finally take it seriously? Will they accept mitigation efforts intended to control the spread?==

Should Biden win, no Trumpster will do anything that might help Biden and our country. They will double down on their self destructive and societal destructive behavior. Their ignorance knows no bounds.

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Comment by immune system Thursday, Nov 12, 20 @ 8:46 am