Spectrum Health Ludington Hospital Weekly Update, April 30, 2020.

Spectrum Health Ludington Hospital Weekly Update, April 30, 2020.

The following was submitted by Spectrum Health Ludington Hospital:

If you have specific questions about hospital operations, please contact the hospital directly at 231-843-2591. The hospital does not respond to questions asked on the MCP or OCP Facebook pages.

Spectrum Health Ludington Hospital is providing a weekly update regarding activities and current happenings related to the COVID-19 pandemic.

We encourage you to visit spectrumhealth.org/covid-19. The dashboard below reflects the 16-county region served by Spectrum Health. Local information can be found on the District #10 Health Department web site at www.dhd10.org.

As of Monday, April 27, 2020:

COVID-19 positive cases. To date, as of Monday, April 27, there are eight confirmed cases in Mason County, nine in Oceana County, 11 in Manistee County, and two in Lake County. Confirmed cases and deaths will be reported through the District Health Department.  www.dhd10.org. Ludington Hospital has completed 329 specimen collections for testing.

Limited services begin to resume.  Spectrum Health is beginning to resume services on a very limited basis that, in a medical provider’s judgment, are essential to a patient’s health, safety or welfare and should not be delayed. Many safety measures are in place to ensure patient and team member safety as some services are resumed. Masks will be provided to patients and visitors, and proper social distancing will be practiced, as well as personal protective equipment for team members as they work with patients. Seating options in all common areas and waiting rooms will support guidelines for social distancing. Spectrum Health Ludington Hospital environmental services teams have done an exceptional job implementing even more stringent cleaning protocols and schedules. We are doing everything possible to help ensure the safety of patients and team members.

What to Know When Wearing a Standard Isolation Mask. If coming in to Spectrum Health Ludington Hospital, isolation masks are provided. Please follow the tips below to ensure proper use of isolation masks:

Do:

• Ensure mask has no defects prior to putting it on.
• Sanitize your hands prior to putting on and when removing a mask.
• If the mask has a color on one side, wear with the colored side facing out away from your face.
• Wear with nose bridge at the top (you’ll notice ability to mold mask to nose bridge, if on correctly).
• Cover your nose and mouth.
• Ensure mask pleats are facing down.
• Remove when eating and drinking.

Do Not:

• Wear upside down or inside out (white part facing forward).
• Touch the outside of your mask.
• Pull down over your chin (this leads to greatest exposure risk).
• Leave half-off, hanging from one ear.
• Crisscross ear ties.

Changes to our COVID-19 testing process: The testing process for COVID-19 at Spectrum Health Ludington Hospital still involves 3 steps:
Screening:  Those who are having symptoms that could be the COVID-19 virus, such as fever, cough and shortness of breath, should first call the free Spectrum Health screening hotline at 1.833.559.0659. For emergency symptoms, please call 9-1-1. This step remains unchanged.

Specimen Collection: Those who meet the criteria for testing through our hotline screening, will be given an appointment at Spectrum Health Ludington Hospital for a specimen collection. The appointment is scheduled directly with the patient through the Spectrum Health Grand Rapids call center. Patients will be given a specific appointment time and location and will be given a phone number to call when they arrive. They will remain in their car. A nurse will print the patient’s specimen label, bring the supplies and collect the specimen with the patient in the car. The collection is done via a swab of the back of the nasal cavity. No specimen collection is done without an order and an appointment.

Testing:  Once a specimen is collected, it is tested, with results returned within 24 hours. Testing capacity across the country has been increasing, but test supplies are still very limited. Therefore, testing criteria must be met before an order will be given for specimen collection. To date, Spectrum Health Ludington Hospital has completed 197 swabs for tests. If a test comes back positive, notification is made to the patient and instructions given on what to do. District Health Department #10 will also follow up with the patient to determine potential exposures.
Practice Social Distancing in Spectrum Health Facilities. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, one of the best ways to prevent the spread of COVID-19 is to practice safe social/physical distancing whenever possible. Please help keep everyone safe and healthy by avoiding close contact, staying at least six feet away from others and not gathering in groups. Visitor restrictions are still in place to ensure safety of patients and team members.

Treatment of COVID-19 with convalescent plasma. Spectrum Health is offering a new treatment option to COVID-19 patients. Studies coordinated by the National COVID-19 Convalescent Plasma Project have shown that convalescent plasma therapy improves outcomes in patients who are critically ill with the COVID-19 virus. In collaboration with Versiti Blood Centers, who specialize in safe blood and plasma donation processes, Spectrum Health is now providing convalescent plasma to patients who meet eligibility criteria.

Events and classes.  All classes and events sponsored and hosted by Spectrum Health Ludington Hospital are being evaluated. Most events have been canceled through mid-May. We are evaluating how our classes can be held going forward in a way that allows safe participation. For a list of all classes and events that are cancelled, visit: https://www.spectrumhealth.org/cancellation

Philanthropy continues to play a pivotal role. Philanthropy has always been vital to our work and improving the health of the community. The Foundation has set up a COVID-19 response fund, which will be used in a variety of ways to support Spectrum Health hospitals during COVID-19.  https://www.spectrumhealth.org/covid19/giving-opportunities.

Area medical staff feeding the frontlines. Medical staff members and their spouses have been sponsoring meals every week at Spectrum Health Ludington Hospital to feed all the health care workers at the hospital. They have collectively donated funds to purchase meals. This has been a wonderful show of support for our team.

#ThankYouSpectrumHealth Online Forum. We’ve received an outpouring of appreciation from our community for our team members and the work Spectrum Health is doing. Visit the new online forum where people can share their gratitude and support through messages, pictures or videos at spectrumhealth.org/thankyou. We hope it provides some joy and encouragement during these stressful times.