‘A surge of patients is coming’: Tidelands announces changes to medical gear practices
Tidelands Health warned its workforce that it will be weeks until the area sees a peak in coronavirus cases.
“Computer modeling tells us we are three weeks or more from the peak spread of COVID-19 in our community,” health officials wrote in a letter to employees Sunday. “A surge of patients is coming.”
The letter was posted to Tidelands Health social media sites and shared with The Sun News after questions over a viral Facebook post. Late Saturday, Troy Perry, the husband of a Tidelands Waccamaw hospital nurse, posted on Facebook about his wife’s condition. Perry stated his wife, Ambrosia, was in critical care at the Myrtle Beach area hospital after treating possible coronavirus patients while being denied access to personal protective equipment.
On Monday, Ambrosia posted on Facebook that she tested negative for coronavirus and that she was recovering at home.
Tidelands officials stated in the letter that they followed guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for the use of PPE, according to the letter. The medical staff has access to gear for all patients, including those with COVID-19, leaders contend.
The gear includes N95 respirators, face shields, isolation gowns and gloves.
Still, a team of Tidelands medical staff and administrators developed new PPE guidelines, which started Monday.
Medical workers in direct patient care are required to wear masks, officials stated. The type of mask will be determined by the risk in the area. There is also a voluntary policy where employees who work near others, but in a non-patient care role, can wear a mask.
“There is nothing more important to Tidelands Health than the safety of our team members,” officials wrote in the letter. “We’ve all seen the news stories and images from other states — doctors without masks, nurses wearing garbage bags. That is NOT our reality here, and we are doing everything in our power to make sure it never is.”
Tidelands hospitals has a good supply of PPE, including thousands of N95 respirator masks that community members help fit with elastic bands. But, administrators say the supply is not limitless. While they are working to buy more, there is a worldwide shortage.
Improper use of PPE will deplete Tidelands’ stockpile and can increase the risk of exposure, according to the letter. No Tidelands employee has been — or will be disciplined — for wearing a PPE, even if it is at an inappropriate time, officials say.
Administrators also stressed the dispute is not between the boardroom and those in patient care and that everyone is on the same team.
“We are united by our shared mission to serve and protect our community,” the letter states.
This story was originally published April 5, 2020 at 4:55 PM.
