KU Health Says COVID-19 Census Steady

The University of Kansas Health System reported this morning that its inpatient census of COVID-19 was unchanged since Friday, at 33, a hopeful sign that efforts to contain the spread were paying off.

Three of the physicans at the main hospital held a joint news conference for updates on the spread of the illness and efforts to treat patients and keep it contained. 

Joining Chief Medical Officer Steve Stites were Dana Hawkinson, an infectious-disease specialist, and Tiffany Horsley, an infection-control nurse. Stites likened the community response to the pandemic to a baseball game, saying “we’re still in the first inning, but we have scored a run.” He was said he was cautiously optimistic about being able to keep the spread under control in Kansas, and anticipated that in about a month, the illness may reach its peak.

Until then, he and Hawkinson said, residents should contiue to remain at home as much as possible to slow the transmission. And they reminded people about the need to maintain frequent hand-washing with alcohol-based solutions, refrain from touching their faces and cover up coughs and sneezes.

Horsely, demosntrating proper use of masks that are becoming more popular–even required, in some U.S. locales–warned that using one the wrong way could put you at greater risk for contracting the virus. Homemade cloth masks, she said, may help keep you from infecting others, but have less use as means of personal protection.