Southeast Health sees no COVID spread in hospital after face mask enforcement

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    Houston County, AL (Dothan Eagle) — Southeast Health has not seen any COVID-19 transmission since doubling down on personal protection, namely face masks, for the hospital’s frontline workers, its chief medical officer said Thursday.

After learning the coronavirus is easily transmitted through respiratory droplets, the hospital began requiring providers to use an N-95 mask and face shield when dealing with someone who has the virus or is suspected of having it. Other times, providers still don surgical masks.

“It’s the only thing we know with certainty that has made a difference,” Chief Medical Officer Dr. Charles Harkness said. “Once we put processes in place, we have not seen the virus spread in the hospital so we know that that works.”

COVID-19 is an aerosolized virus and highly contagious, he said. It spreads easily from person to person in enclosed environments and when people are in close contact or talking with one another.

“I think what bothers us the most is that we see people going into stores, restaurants or things like that without wearing masks,” Harkness said. “We’re not trying to dictate how they live, but we’re trying to prevent them from getting what could be a fatal illness.”

Harkness, like other medical professionals, said the most important thing area residents can do to prevent getting the virus is wear a mask, especially when going into enclosed spaces, and adhere to social distancing guidelines from the Alabama Department of Public Health and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

“I think people just need to be aware that this virus is definitely still in our community. They can be exposed to it unwittingly,” he said.

Harkness recalls having patients who contracted the virus after attending a Mother’s Day gathering, where virtually everyone was infected.

Recent trend
Harkness has seen new virus cases plateau in recent weeks, averaging one to two COVID-19 admissions daily. On Thursday, the hospital reported 12 inpatients being treated for coronavirus symptoms, according to its website. It also notes that 143 patients have been discharged during the pandemic.

There have been 3,528 COVID-19 tests performed, and 203 hospital patients have tested positive for the virus. Most of those patients remain on a regular medical floor, while a small percentage is sent to the intensive care unit.

Being aware of the coronavirus’ presence in the community has created a new normal for the hospital medical staff, and administrators believe the virus will remain a threat for “a while.”

Southeast Health visitors are still restricted, except for end-of-life circumstances, and patients are tested before being admitted for elective procedures.

Until recently, hospital staffers were testing every patient who entered, even those that were asymptomatic, but were not able to keep up with the volume of tests needed, so it slightly reduced the process.

So far, those diagnosed with COVID-19 at Southeast Health average around 59 years old. While it is unclear if any children have tested positive in a pediatrician’s office, none has had to be admitted to the hospital.

Local tallies
The latest numbers from ADPH show Houston County with 333 confirmed COVID-19 cases, a third of which have been confirmed over the last 14 days. Altogether, there have been 1,524 cases in Wiregrass counties: Barbour, 262; Coffee, 300; Covington, 198; Dale, 190; Geneva, 49; Henry, 110; and Pike, 344.

There have been 11 Wiregrass deaths associated with the virus: one each in Barbour, Coffee and Covington counties; two each in Henry and Pike counties; and five in Houston County.

Wiregrass deaths account for just 1.37% of the total deaths — 801 — in Alabama. However, there have been 27 COVID-19 deaths reported by Southeast Health. The deaths tracked by ADPH are assigned to the county of residence, so several of the fatal cases in Dothan are patients from outside Alabama.

On Thursday, Alabama reported 27,796 confirmed COVID cases, up 8,746 in the last two weeks.

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