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GOOD MORNING AND WELCOME TO COVID-19 TALK WITH LOCAL HEALTH AUTHORITIES.
JOINING US FROM HARRIS COUNTY IS DR.
ERICA BROWN, REPRESENTING THE CITY OF HOUSTON, DR. DAVID PERS.
SPECIAL THANKS TO KATHY FINNER, PAST PRESIDENT ROTARY CLUB OF HOUSTON.
SPECIAL THANKS TO OUR PRODUCER, PRISCILLA KAY.
I'M STEVEN WILLIAMS, DIRECTOR OF THE HOUSTON HEALTH DEPARTMENT.
Y'ALL WE'RE WOUNDING DOWN AND GETTING CLOSE TO THAT HUNDREDTH SHOW WHERE WE WILL CONCLUDE.
BUT, UH, LET'S JUST DO THE LAST FOUR STARTING WITH THIS ONE.
TRANSMISSION AND CURRENT STATUS IS, THE VIRAL BURDEN IN, IS THE VIRAL BURDEN IN HOUSTON RISING.
SO, UH, THIS DAVID FIRST, I'LL TAKE THAT ONE.
'CAUSE WE, THIS USUALLY LEADS INTO THE WASTEWATER, UH, DISCUSSION.
AND SO WE'RE SEEING A, UH, SIGNIFICANT INCREASE IN THE AMOUNT OF COVID VIRUS IN THE WASTEWATER.
IT'S GOING UP BY ABOUT 30 OR 40% PER WEEK.
SO RIGHT NOW WE'RE AT ABOUT 349% OF THAT JULY 6TH, 2020 VALUE THAT WE USE AS THE REFERENCE.
UH, NOT SURPRISINGLY, WE'RE ALSO STARTING TO SEE FALLING ON THE WASTEWATER.
WE'RE STARTING TO SEE RISES IN POSITIVITY, WHETHER YOU LOOK AT THE CITY OF HOUSTON'S OR IF YOU LOOK AT THE TEXAS MEDICAL CENTERS, OR IF YOU LOOK AT THE HARRIS COUNTY, UM, THE DATA, THEY'RE ALL SHOWING, UH, INCREASES IN POSITIVITY RATES.
AND THEN MOST IMPORTANTLY, WE'RE ALSO SEEING THE INCREASES IN THE HOSPITALIZATIONS.
AND AGAIN, REMEMBER THESE LAG A COUPLE WEEKS BEHIND THE, THE INCREASE IN WASTEWATER.
SO, UM, NOW THE, THE NUMBER OF FOLKS THAT ARE HOSPITALIZED ARE WITH COVID ARE WAY, WAY LESS THAN WHAT WE'VE SEEN BEFORE.
SO WE'RE STARTING FROM A REALLY LOW POINT, BUT THEY ARE GOING UP.
AND THE OTHER KIND OF GOOD NEWS IS THAT THE MAJORITY OF THE FOLKS THAT ARE BEING REPORTED AS HAVING COVID AT THE HOSPITALS ARE BEING ADMITTED FOR SOMETHING ELSE.
BUT, UM, ARE TESTING POSITIVE FOR COVID.
ABOUT 20% OF THE ADMISSIONS ARE BECAUSE OF COVID.
THE OTHER 80% ARE INSTANTLY FOUND.
BUT, UH, WE CAN PROBABLY EXPECT THOSE PERCENTAGES TO KEEP SHIFTING WITH, UH, MORE PEOPLE BEING ADMITTED BECAUSE OF COVID AS WE'VE SEEN IN THE PAST.
SO, RESPIRATORY ILLNESSES LIKE COVID, RSV AND THE FLU FILLING HOSPITALS, AS DAVID JUST TOLD, TOLD US ALSO RHINOVIRUS AND ENTER AND TO VERO VIRUS.
ARE, ARE THE NUMBERS INCREASING AND WHAT IS THE CAUTION? ARE WE READY FOR ANOTHER SURGE? OH, YES.
PERCH JUST MENTIONED, THE NUMBERS ARE RISING, UM, BUT NOT NEARLY AS HIGH AS WE HAVE SEEN IN THE PREVIOUS YEARS.
UM, THE DIFFERENCE THIS TIME IS THAT WE'RE SEEING, UH, A FLU SPIKE AND, UH, AN RSV SPIKE EARLIER THAN WE WOULD HAVE PREVIOUSLY SEEN ALONG WITH, WE WEREN'T, WE'RE NOT FINISHED WITH THE COVID PANDEMIC.
WE HAVE HOLIDAYS COMING, BEGINNING WITH THANKSGIVING, SO FAMILIES ARE GATHERING, FRIENDS ARE GATHERING, UM, AND PEOPLE ARE JUST OUT AND ABOUT FOR THE HOLIDAY SEASONS, WHICH, WHICH IS CONTRIBUTING ADDITIONALLY TO SPREAD WHEN WE DON'T HAVE AS MANY, UM, PREVENTIVE MEASURES IN PLACE THAT WE HAD.
UM, PEOPLE ARE NOT WEARING MASKS AS MUCH.
UH, OUR BOOSTER VACCINATION RATES FOR THE COVID, UH, VIRUS ARE BELOW THE NATIONAL AVERAGES.
UM, IT IS FLU SEASON, SO WE SHOULD BE GETTING OUR FLU SHOTS.
ALL OF THESE THINGS THAT WE WOULD BE DOING TO PROTECT OURSELVES AND DID DO TO PROTECT OURSELVES FROM COVID.
SOME OF THOSE WE'VE GOTTEN A LITTLE BIT LAX ABOUT.
AND SO WE ARE SEEING SOME INCREASES IN THE NUMBERS.
UM, AS FAR AS WHAT WE CAN EXPECT THE NEXT HOLIDAYS ARE COMING.
AND SO, UM, WE ARE FULLY EXPECTING TO CONTINUE TO SEE THE NUMBERS RISE.
I DON'T THINK TO THE LEVELS THAT WE SAW IN PREVIOUS YEARS, BUT WE ARE EXPECTING TO SEE THEM RISE.
UM, THE STAFF WITHIN OUR HOSPITAL SYSTEMS AND OUR HEALTHCARE SYSTEMS, UM, UM, YOU KNOW, WE ARE EXPERIENCING SOME SHORTAGES.
AND WHEN WE, WHEN WE HAVE, UH, THIS, THIS TRIAD OF COVID RSV AND FLU, UM, IT'S, IT IS GOING TO BE CHALLENGING FOR, FOR ALL OF THE STAFF TO CARE FOR, UM, PATIENTS IN NEED.
YOU ANTICIPATED MY FOLLOW UP QUESTION, AND YOUR ANSWER WAS, WE'RE STILL IN A PANDEMIC.
WE ARE
SO BQ ONE AND BQ 1.1 ARE THE NEW VARIANTS THAT ARE TAKING OVER.
AND REMEMBER, A VARIANT TAKES OVER BECAUSE IT SPREADS MORE EASILY THAN THE ONE THAT WAS IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD BEFORE THAT.
SO, UH, THAT'S WHAT'S, WELL, THAT'S WHAT'S HAPPENING NOW.
THESE ARE MEMBERS OF THE OMICRON FAMILY.
SO THE BOOSTER, THE BIVALENT BOOSTER HAD PROTECTION AGAINST THE OMICRON BA FIVE.
IT'S EARLY NOW, BUT THE DATA IS STARTING TO LOOK LIKE THE BIVALENT, UH, VACCINE IS NOT
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PROVIDING THE LEVEL OF PROTECTION AGAINST BQ ONE AND BQ 1.1 THAT IT DID AGAINST BA FIVE.UH, BUT LET'S KEEP A COUPLE OF THINGS IN MIND.
NUMBER ONE IS WHEN THE MRNA VACCINES CAME OUT WITH AN OVER 90% EFFICACY RATE, THAT IS EXTREMELY GOOD.
SO WE DON'T NEED TO GET COMFORTABLE WITH THAT BEING THE NORM.
THERE'S AN EXTREMELY HIGH EFFICACY RATE FOR A VACCINE.
I, I DON'T WANNA PUT A NUMBER ON THE EFFICACY RATE FOR BQ BECAUSE IT'S REALLY, IT'S A LITTLE BIT TOO EARLY.
I'VE SEEN A COUPLE OF REPORTS AND THE NUMBERS ARE, UM, THEY DIFFER FROM ONE REPORT TO THE NEXT.
UH, BUT IT DOES LOOK LIKE THAT'S PROBABLY NOT AS EFFECTIVE.
BUT WHAT IS INTERESTING IS THAT THE PEOPLE WHO WERE VACCINATED WITH THE BIVALENT AND THEN CAUGHT BQ, WHETHER IT BE ONE OR 1.1, THEY'RE HAVING A VERY ROBUST RESPONSE IN THEIR IMMUNE SYSTEM TO THE BQ.
UH, SO IT, IT, YOU KNOW, WE DON'T WANT ANYBODY TO GO OUT AND GET SICK, BUT FOR THOSE WHO GOT THE BIVALENT, THEY ARE HAVING A VERY ROBUST RESPONSE COMPARED TO THOSE WHO WERE NOT VACCINATED AT ALL, PROVIDING THEM GREATER PROTECTION GOING DOWN THE ROAD.
CAMELS ARE ONE OF THE INTERMEDIARY HOSTS FOR MERS.
MANY US CITIZENS RODE CAMELS DURING VISITS THROUGH QATAR.
AND THE WORLD CUP IS MERS A VARIANT OF COVID.
SO NO, MERS IS NOT A VARIANT OF COVID.
SO THERE ARE, UM, MANY DIFFERENT SARS UH, UM, UM, VIRUSES, UM, WHICH FRANKLY HAD BEEN AROUND PRIOR TO THE COVID VARIANT OF, OF SARS.
UM, UM, AND I'M NOT SURE THAT THIS IS ONE, BUT THIS IS ME, IS NOT, UH, RELATED SPECIFICALLY TO COVID, ALTHOUGH IT IS A RESPIRATORY VIRUS THAT DOES HAVE SIMILAR SYMPTOMS. THE GOOD THING ABOUT MERS THOUGH IS THAT PROTECTION FROM MERS IS REALLY THROUGH STANDARD PRECAUTIONS.
SO GOOD HAND WASHING, UM, HAND HYGIENE, COVERING YOUR NOSE AND MOUTH.
UM, CERTAINLY, YOU KNOW, IF YOU'RE SICK TO STAY AWAY FROM PEOPLE.
AND, AND NOW THAT WE, UM, HAVE GONE THROUGH MUCH OF, UH, THE PROTECTION MEASURES WITH COVID TO WEAR A MASK, UM, IF YOU'RE CONCERNED ABOUT IT, WE'LL PROTECT YOU AGAINST A LOT OF THINGS.
OUR HARRIS COUNTY JAILS OVERCROWDED.
CAN YOU GIVE A REPORT ON THE INCIDENTS OF COVID INFECTIONS AMONG J AMONG JAIL PRISONERS? SO, YOU KNOW, I'M GONNA START THIS ANSWER.
I'M GONNA, DR. BROWN MAY WANT TO CHIME IN 'CAUSE SHE'S GOT A LOT OF DIRECT EXPERIENCE WITH IT.
BUT LET, LEMME JUST SAY YOU A COUPLE THINGS ABOUT THE JAIL.
I DON'T HAVE ANY CURRENT NUMBERS ON THE JAIL.
WE'VE WORKED, WE HAVE A TEAM THAT WORKS WITH THEM, AND GENERALLY I GET ALERTED WHEN THERE'S A PROBLEM.
AND I'VE NOT BEEN ALERTED LA RECENTLY, SO I'M GONNA ASSUME THAT THEY'VE GOT THINGS, UM, AS UNDER CONTROL AS CAN BE.
BUT I REALLY DO NEED TO, UH, UH, SHOUT OUT TO THE JAIL MEDICAL STAFF.
AND DR. BROWN WAS PART OF THAT BACK IN THE BEGINNING, AND THEY DID A TREMENDOUS JOB.
IT IS, WAS A, A CON A SITUATION, A TREMENDOUS RISK FOR A HORRIBLE OUTBREAK AND LOTS OF PROBLEMS, AND IT NEVER DEVELOPED.
DID THEY HAVE COVID THERE? YES.
DID THEY HAVE THEY HAD DEATHS THERE? YES.
UM, BUT NOT TO, TO THE LEVEL THAT WE'RE SEEING IN SOME OTHER, UH, JAILS ACROSS THE UNITED STATES.
UH, ALL THE POTENTIAL AND IT, YOU KNOW, IT IS A CONSTANT STRUGGLE, UH, BUT THEY HAVE REALLY BEEN ABLE TO KEEP PRETTY MUCH A LID ON THAT.
AND, AND, UM, UH, TO ANSWER THE QUESTION, I'M NOT AWARE OF ANY PROBLEMS THERE BECAUSE I WOULD GET ALERTED IF THERE WAS, AND I HAVEN'T BEEN ALERTED LATELY, BUT DR. BROWN, YOU WORKED THERE AND KUDOS YOU AND YOUR TEAM WHEN YOU WERE THERE, BUT, UM, I DON'T KNOW.
MAYBE YOU HAVE SOMETHING THAT I DON'T KNOW.
NO, I, I I THINK YOU, YOU'VE ANSWERED THE QUESTION PERFECTLY.
UM, UH, DAVID, UM, THE POSSIBILITY, UH, FOR OUTBREAK IS ENORMOUS IN A CONGREGATE SETTING, AND THEY DO A PHENOMENAL JOB, UM, ABOVE AND BEYOND TO PROTECT, UM, NOT ONLY THE EMPLOYEES BUT THE INMATES AS WELL, UM, FROM ALL INFECTIOUS DISEASE.
THEY, THEY REALLY HAVE DONE AN EXTRAORDINARY JOB.
AND AGAIN, TO MY KNOWLEDGE AS WELL, THERE IS NOT AN INCREASE, UM, UH, IN THE JAIL.
YOU WERE OUR THANK YOU CHIEF PUBLIC HEALTH STRATEGIST THAT WE RECRUITED TO COME AND BAIL US OUT.
SO MAYBE THEY'RE JUST DOING WHAT YOU TOLD 'EM TO DO,
SO I THINK THIS IS NO DIFFERENT THAN THE CONVERSATION THAT WE'VE HAD IN, IN, UM, PREVIOUS QUESTIONS.
UM, UH, YOU KNOW, ANY GROUP, ESPECIALLY DURING THIS TIME, ANY, ANY GATHERINGS BRING RISK.
AND SO WE HAVE TO BE REALLY CAREFUL TO WEIGH OUR INDIVIDUAL RISK GIVEN OUR COMORBIDITIES, UM, UM, IN GOING INTO GATHERINGS.
UM, THE ONE THING THAT WE CAN PROBABLY NOT EVEN, PROBABLY THE ONE THING THAT WE CAN GUARANTEE IS SOMEBODY IN THE CROWD HAS SOMETHING THAT'S JUST A GUARANTEE.
AND SO YOU, YOU HAVE TO, AGAIN, WHERE YOUR INDIVIDUAL RISK OF CATCHING SOMETHING, WHETHER THAT BE COVID, WHETHER THAT BE RSV, WHETHER THAT BE THE FLU, UM, THE RECOMMENDATION, OUR RECOMMENDATION IS TO TAKE ALL PRECAUTIONS, UM, GET YOUR FLU SHOT, GET
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YOUR COVID VACCINES IN YOUR BOOSTER.ARE THEY A HUNDRED PERCENT EFFECTIVE? AS WE'VE DISCUSSED, PROBABLY NOT, BUT DO THEY PREVENT AGAINST SEVERE DISEASE AND DEATH? ABSOLUTELY.
THAT QUESTION HAS BEEN ANSWERED TIME AND TIME AGAIN.
UM, FOR THOSE WHO HAVE, UM, SOME CHRONIC MEDICAL CONDITIONS, SOMETHING TO CONSIDER.
UM, IF, IF YOU'RE GOING, WE UNDERSTAND IT'S BEEN A LONG ROAD.
IT HAS, IT'S BEEN A LONG ROAD.
UM, AND WE UNDERSTAND THE PSYCHOSOCIAL IMPACT OF US BEING IN ISOLATION, BUT WEAR A MASK, THEN PUT A, PUT A MASK ON.
UM, BE CAREFUL ABOUT HOW MANY PEOPLE YOU ARE AROUND.
UM, IF YOU'RE HAVING GATHERINGS AT YOUR HOME, THERE ARE, UM, HOME TESTS AVAILABLE.
PERHAPS YOU ASK YOUR FAMILY MEMBERS AND YOUR FRIENDS TO TEST BEFORE THEY COME.
UM, YOU KNOW, SO JUST SOME THINGS THAT WE CAN TAKE INTO ACCOUNT AS PRECAUTION.
IT WILL NEVER BE A HUNDRED PERCENT, BUT IT, IT'S A GIVEN THAT IN MASS EVENTS THERE ARE, THERE IS GOING TO BE SOME TYPE OF, UH, VIRUS, UH, FLOATING AROUND.
AND WE CAN'T SAY WHETHER YOU WILL BE AFFECTED OR NOT.
AS OF LAST WEEK,
AND THE, AND, UH, MOST OF THE EMS AGENCIES AROUND THE REGION HAVE GOT SIMILAR PROTOCOLS, BUT I, I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT THAT THE, THAT THE PERSONAL RIGHTS QUESTION UNDERSTANDS.
THERE'S, THERE'S TWO SETS OF SITUATIONS.
ONE IS THERE ARE FOLKS WHO'VE TRAVELED FROM UGANDA THAT WE ARE AWARE OF, AND WE'VE BEEN NOTIFIED BY THE CDC THAT THEY'RE IN OUR COMMUNITY, AND THAT THEY ARE AT EITHER NO RISK OR, OR LOW RISK.
AND, UH, RIGHT NOW THERE'S LESS THAN A HALF A DOZEN OF THEM.
AND I, I, THE NUMBER CHANGES ALMOST DAILY AS SOMEBODY COMES IN AND WE WATCH 'EM FOR 21 DAYS AND THEN THEY DROP OFF THE LIST AND, AND, UH, SO ON.
SO WE MAKE IT DISPATCHED TO A LOCATION WHERE THERE'S SOMEBODY WHO WE KNOW IS ON THAT LIST OR IN THE SITUATION WHERE THEY, YOU KNOW, FOR WHATEVER REASON, THEY'RE NOT ON THE LIST, WE'RE NOT AWARE OF THEM WHEN WE GET THERE AND WE FIND OUT THAT THEY'VE RECENTLY BEEN TO UGANDA, AND HEAVEN FORBID THEY WERE IN UGANDA TO BURY A, A LOVED ONE WHO WAS BLEEDING FROM THEIR EYES, THEIR EARS, THEIR NOSE AND BLEEDING EVERYWHERE, THAT WOULD BE THE, THE SCARY REPORT.
THE, UH, WE, WE HAVE A VERY ELABORATE PROTOCOL.
WE TRY TO MINIMIZE THE NUMBER OF PEOPLE.
IN FACT, WE MINIMIZE IT TO TWO PEOPLE.
WE'LL HAVE ANY INTERACTION WITH THAT PATIENT.
UH, OUR HAZMAT TEAM GETS INVOLVED.
WE PRE NOTIFY THE HOSPITALS THAT THEY'RE PREPARED.
UH, WHEN WE GET TO THE HOSPITAL, HAZMAT IS THERE TO HELP US, YOU KNOW, TRANSFER THE PATIENT, UH, DEON OUR PEOPLE.
AND, UH, IT'S A, IT IS A PRETTY ELABORATE, UH, PROCESS.
AND, UH, WE ARE ABLE TO TAKE CARE OF CRITICALLY ILL PATIENTS OR STABLE PATIENTS EITHER WAY, UH, WITH THIS PROCESS.
SO, UM, WE'RE, YOU KNOW, RIGHT NOW WE'RE, WE'RE, OF COURSE, WE'RE ALWAYS REVAMPING THESE AND RE AND, UH, RE-LOOKING AT 'EM.
AND THE GOOD NEWS IS THAT THE SITUATION IN UGANDA LOOKS LIKE IT'S, UH, HEADED TOWARDS BEING UNDER BETTER CONTROL THAN IT WAS, UH, A MONTH OR SO AGO.
WHAT IS THE PERCENTAGE ARE OUR NUMBERS OF DOCTORS AND NURSE, CLINICAL WORKFORCE WHO MUST BE QUARANTINED BECAUSE OF WORKPLACE ACQUIRED COVID SUSPICION? DO WE KNOW THAT? NO.
AND SO I THINK THIS IS SPEAKING TO THE, WHAT IS THE RECOMMENDATION? HOW, HOW WOULD WE MANAGE THIS? SO THE, THE LATEST, YOU KNOW, IN THE BEGINNING OF COD, THE RECOMMENDATION WAS THAT ANYBODY WHO WAS EXPOSED, ALSO QUARANTINE, NOT ISOLATE, BUT QUARANTINE AND WAIT TO SEE IF THEY DEVELOP SYMPTOMS, UNDERSTANDING THE BALANCE BETWEEN THE NEED TO PROVIDE HEALTHCARE AND IN THE WORKFORCE PERIOD, AND THE EFFECT OF THAT VERSUS, UM, THE RISK OF SPREADING THE VIRUS.
UM, THAT'S SHIFTED A LITTLE BIT TO WHERE WE ARE NOW, WHICH IS, UNLESS YOU DEVELOP SYMPTOMS, SO LET'S SAY YOU'VE BEEN EXPOSED, UNLESS YOU DEVELOP SYMPTOMS, YOU CAN CONTINUE TO WORK, CERTAINLY WEAR A MASK AND TAKE ALL PRECAUTIONS, BUT YOU CAN CONTINUE TO WORK.
WHAT IS, HOW IS TRANSMISSIBLE DISEASE IN THE HOMELESS POPULATION? I, I'LL ANSWER THAT.
AND, AND THE, UH, WE NEED TO KEEP IN MIND SOMETHING I THINK WHICH IS IMPORTANT.
WE TALK ABOUT THE HOMELESS POPULATION.
I THINK MOST PEOPLE, GENERALLY IN THE GENERAL PUBLIC GET A PICTURE IN THEIR MIND OF THE PEOPLE LIVING UNDER THE BRIDGE AND PANHANDLING.
THAT ACTUALLY IS A FAIRLY SMALL PERCENTAGE OF THE HOMELESS POPULATION.
MOST HOMELESS FOLKS, UH, INDIVIDUALS IN THE HOUSTON AREA ARE ACTUALLY IN SHELTERS.
AND IN FACT, A SHOCKING STATISTIC IS THE DEMOGRAPHIC OF THE MOST COMMON HOMELESS PERSON IS A YOUNG WOMAN WITH A TWO TO THREE KIDS, UH, IN A SHELTER.
SO WHEN YOU THINK OF THE HOMELESS PERSON, GENERALLY A MALE, UM, LIVING UNDER A BRIDGE, THAT IS ACTUALLY THE SMALLER DEMOGRAPHIC NOW IN THE FOLKS WHO ARE LIVING UNDER THE BRIDGE OR LIVING OUTDOORS IN TENTS, THEY'RE LIVING OUTDOORS.
AND SO CERTAINLY DISEASE CAN BE TRANSMITTED ACROSS THEM, BUT THAT'S NOT WHERE WE SEE THE OUTBREAKS OF TRANSMISSIBLE DISEASE IN HOMELESS FOLKS.
SO RIGHT NOW WE ARE ACTUALLY MONITORING THE WASTEWATER OF
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MULTIPLE SHELTERS.AND AS SOON AS WE SEE THAT THERE'S SOME COVID ACTIVITY OR, OR WHAT HAVE YOU IN THERE, WE WORK WITH THOSE FOLKS AND EVERYBODY INSIDE GETS TESTED.
AND WE THEN ARE ABLE TO ISOLATE AND QUARANTINE FOLKS.
AND THAT'S WHY WE'VE NOT SEEN HUGE OUTBREAKS OF ILLNESS WITHIN OUR HOMELESS POPULATIONS.
UH, CERTAINLY NOT THE ONES THAT ARE IN THE CONGREGATE SETTING, WHICH IS THE HIGH RISK, UH, SETTING.
THE OTHER THING ABOUT HOMELESS FOLKS THAT DO LIVE UNDER THE BRIDGE, IF YOU WILL, IS THAT THEY GET ILL, THEY TEND TO NOT REACH OUT FOR HELP.
THEY JUST, THEY TAKE CARE OF THEMSELVES.
SO TO SOME DEGREE, THAT NEVER GETS RECORDED.
SO THAT'S A, UH, MAKES IT A LITTLE BIT MORE DIFFICULT TO ANSWER THIS QUESTION.
CHESTER INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY SUGGESTS COVID VARIANTS ARE STILL TRANSMISSIBLE BETWEEN MAMMALS.
SO THERE WAS A STUDY DONE, UM, IN BATS, AND IT WAS THOUGHT THAT BATS WERE THE FIRST, UM, TRANSMISSIBLE MAMMAL, THE FIRST HOST OF COVID.
AND SO THERE WAS A STUDY DONE ON THE NEW VARIANTS ON THE BA FOUR AND FIVE VARIANT.
AND WITHOUT GETTING INTO GREAT DETAIL, BECAUSE FRANKLY I DID NOT READ THE WHOLE STUDY, UM, UM, IT, IT DOES APPEAR THAT THE VIRUS IS STILL JUST AS TRANSMISSIBLE, UM, EVEN WITH THE VARIANCE.
AND SO THERE IS AN ASSUMPTION MADE THAT AMONG MAMMALS, UM, THERE IS STILL HIGH TRANSMISSION RATES VERY CONFUSED ABOUT HOW TO DIAGNOSE WITHOUT A TEST.
FLU COMES ON IN ONE TO FOUR DAYS, AND YOU FEEL MISERABLE WITH FEVER.
COVID COMES ON IN TWO TO FOUR DAYS, AND YOU CAN FEEL MISERABLE.
EARLY IN COVID RESEARCH FEVER WAS CONSIDERED A PRIMARY SIGN.
WHAT ABOUT NOW WITHOUT A TEST? IS THERE A PROBABLE SYMPTOM THAT WILL HINT AT WHAT YOU HAVE? YEAH, YOU KNOW, THIS IS A GREAT QUESTION.
THIS KIND OF COMES TO THE, TO THE ART OF MEDICINE AS OPPOSED TO THE, THE SCIENCE OF MEDICINE.
SO THE, THE COVID TESTS, THE, THE PCR IS HIGHLY RELIABLE.
THE RAPID TESTS, IF YOU'RE SYMPTOMATIC AND YOU'VE BEEN SYMPTOMATIC FOR A COUPLE OF DAYS, ARE, ARE PRETTY RELIABLE.
THE INFLUENZA TEST, THE BEDSIDE INFLUENZA TEST, UNFORTUNATELY, IS NOTORIOUSLY UNRELIABLE.
WHEN IT COMES BACK NEGATIVE, IT COMES BACK POSITIVE.
BUT EVEN PEOPLE WHO HAVE ABSOLUTELY GOT THE FLU AND THEY'VE GOT LOTS OF SYMPTOMS, THE BEDSIDE, UH, POINT OF CARE TEST, AS WE CALL IT FOR INFLUENZA, IS NOT TERRIBLY RELIABLE.
SO IT DOES BECOME THE CLINICIAN'S, YOU KNOW, EXPERTISE IN INTERVIEWING THE PATIENT, EXAMINING THE PATIENT, AND TRYING TO FIGURE OUT WHAT'S GOING ON.
AND I, I WOULD JUST SHARE A LITTLE ANECDOTE.
I REMEMBER IN MEDICAL SCHOOL, UH, A VERY ELDERLY PHYSICIAN STANDING ON THE STAGE AND ASKING US HOW WE DIAGNOSED THE FLU.
AND, YOU KNOW, PEOPLE STARTED TALKING ABOUT THIS TEST AND THAT TEST AND PCR TESTING AND ALL THIS SORT OF STUFF.
AND HE SAID, YES, BUT THAT'S NOT THE RIGHT ANSWER.
YES, THAT'S, BUT THAT'S NOT THE RIGHT ANSWER.
AND HE FINALLY SAID, WHEN YOUR PATIENT WAKES UP AND SAYS THAT FELT FINE, BUT BY NOON THEY WERE SO SICK, THEY THOUGHT THEY WERE GONNA DIE.
AND BY FIVE O'CLOCK THEY WERE SO SICK, THEY THOUGHT THEY WEREN'T GOING TO DIE.
AND SO ANYWAY, SOMETIMES IT IS THE ART OF MEDICINE BECAUSE TESTS ARE, UM, NOT ENTIRELY RELIABLE.
AND, UM, YEAH, WE GO WITH THAT.
BAYLOR COLLEGE OF MEDICINE, DR.
KLOTMAN IS PREDICTING A SURGE.
WHAT DOES RECENT DATA TELL YOU? ACTUALLY, YOU KINDA ANSWERED THAT EARLIER, WE'RE, YES, WE ARE EXPECTING TO SEE A SURGE, NOT AS HIGH AS WE SAW IN PREVIOUS YEARS, BUT WE ARE, WE'RE, WE'RE SE EXPECTING A SURGE.
CAN YOU COMMENT ON WHETHER THE NURSING TRAVELING WORKFORCE TO QUITE A RIDICULOUSLY HIGH SALARIES HAS GOTTEN BACK TO NORMAL? I KNOW THAT
I DON'T, I DON'T KNOW THAT IT'S BACK TO NORMAL.
I, WHEN I TALK WITH MY COLLEAGUES THAT ARE IN HOSPITAL ADMINISTRATION, THEY'RE ALL VERY, YOU KNOW, CLEARLY UNDERSTANDING WHAT, WHAT HAPPENED.
AND THEY ARE, UNLESS THEY HAVE TO, THEY'RE TRYING TO HIRE LOCAL NURSES AT NORMAL, REGULAR, UH, RATES THAN, THAN THE TRAVELING NURSES.
UH, BECAUSE IT'S JUST A, A NON-SUSTAINABLE, YOU KNOW, FISCALLY NON-SUSTAINABLE, UM, UH, SITUATION.
MY UNDERSTANDING IS IT'S NOT QUITE BACK TO NORMAL BECAUSE WE HAVE A, A SIGNIFICANT NURSING SHORTAGE.
AND SO ANYONE WHO WAS OUT THERE IS LISTENING WHO IS A LICENSED UH, NURSE.
EVEN IF YOU ARE DOING TRAVELING, YOU MADE A BOATLOAD OF MONEY FOR A WHILE AND NOW YOU'RE TAKING IT OFF, TAKING IT EASY.
I WOULD ENCOURAGE YOU TO RECONSIDER THAT YOUR COMMUNITY NEEDS YOU NOW.
AND, UH, PLEASE CONSIDER GETTING BACK IN THE WORKFORCE.
WE REALLY, REALLY NEED YOU, AND THANK YOU FOR WHAT YOU'VE DONE SO FAR.
VACCINE AND TREATMENT, ANYTHING NEW? UH, SO THE MOST RECENT THING IS, UM, THE FDA AMENDED, THE EMERGENCY USE AUTHORIZATIONS FOR, UH, THE BIVALENT, MODERNA AND PFIZER VACCINES TO INCLUDE CHILDREN DOWN TO SIX MONTHS.
UM, AND SO THAT JUST HAPPENED, UH, ABOUT ALMOST A WEEK AGO NOW.
UM, AND SO NOW WE HAVE EXPANDED USE FOR BOTH MODERNA AND PFIZER BIVALENT VACCINES DOWN TO SIX MONTHS, UM, FOR CHILDREN THROUGH THE AGE OF FIVE.
UM, SO THAT'S THE MOST RECENT THING.
UM, DAVID, ANY, I DON'T KNOW IF THERE'S ANYTHING ELSE THAT YOU WANNA FOLLOW UP ON.
THE, UH, YOU KNOW, THE, THE BQS DON'T SEEM TO BE, UH, RESPONDING TO THE ANTIVIRALS AND THAT'S GONNA BE A CHALLENGE.
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OF VISITING FROM MEXICO, THEY RECEIVE VACCINES NOT USED IN THIS COUNTRY, THE CUBAN SLASH RUSSIAN SLASH CHINESE COVID VACCINES.WHAT SHOULD BE MY CONCERNS? SO, YOU KNOW, I, I DON'T THINK THAT THE, THE CONCERN NEEDS TO BE GREAT.
SO THESE ARE VACCINES THAT ARE USED IN OTHER COUNTRIES.
AGAIN, YOU KNOW, WHEN OUR MRNA VACCINES CAME OUT WITH A 90 PLUS PERCENT EFFICACY, THAT'S REALLY UNCOMMONLY GOOD.
SO, UH, THE VACCINES THAT WERE USED IN IN OTHER COUNTRIES, THAT THEY'RE NOT BAD.
THEY JUST DIDN'T HAPPEN TO BE AS GOOD AS OURS.
SO, YOU KNOW, IF YOU'VE GOT FOLKS WHO ARE VISITING, IT'S THE USUAL THING, YOU KNOW, WATCH FOR SYMPTOMS AND, AND, UM, YOU KNOW, TRY TO PROTECT YOURSELVES AS AS YOU NEED TO.
UM, BUT THEIR VACCINES AREN'T BAD.
THEY JUST WEREN'T AS GOOD AS OURS.
IT SEEMS THAT SO OF PLASMA IN HOSPITAL PATIENTS HAS STOPPED.
WHY THE CHANGE? SO, YOU KNOW, AS WE'VE TALKED ABOUT IN MANY OF THESE, UM, DISCUSSIONS, THE, THE DATA CONTINUES TO BE EVALUATED AND COLLECTED AND EVALUATED ON WHAT IS REALLY EFFICACIOUS IN MANAGING COVID.
AND SO ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WAS AN EARLIER TREATMENT WAS, UM, UM, PLASMA, UH, REPLACEMENT FOR, UM, THOSE WHO WERE HOSPITALIZED WITH COVID AND HAD SEVERE SYMPTOMS. UM, THE DATA IS NOW SHOWING THAT THAT IS, IS NOT AS EFFICACIOUS AS THEY THOUGHT IT WAS.
UM, IT, IT MAY STILL BE SHOWING THAT FOR THOSE WHO ARE IMMUNOCOMPROMISED, UM, SEVERELY IMMUNOCOMPROMISED, THAT THERE MAY BE SOME BENEFIT.
SO, UM, THE CURRENT RECOMMENDATION IS NOT A TWO USE OR DON'T USE.
I THINK THERE'S STILL, THERE'S STILL, UH, UM, RESEARCH BEING DONE, BUT IT DOES SHOW THAT IN PEOPLE WHO ARE HOSPITALIZED FOR COVID WHO DON'T HAVE SEVERE IMMUNO COMPROMISING DISEASE, THAT IT HAS NOT BEEN EFFICACIOUS.
SO THE RECOMMENDATION IS NOT TO USE FOR THOSE POPULATIONS.
IT USED TO BE FEED A COLD AND STARVE FOR FEVER.
SHOULD WE JUST EAT REGARDLESS SINCE IT'S IMPOSSIBLE TO FIGURE OUT WHAT WE HAVE
I DON'T, AND WHEN YOU'RE SICK, WE DON'T CARE WHAT YOU EAT.
WHEN YOU HAVE A FEVER, YOUR BODY'S INTERNAL THERMOSTAT'S BEEN RESET AND YOUR METABOLISM IS THROUGH THE ROOF.
AND I'LL SHARE WITH YOU THAT, YOU KNOW, AFTER THREE YEARS, I'VE, I'VE CAUGHT COVID LAST MONTH FOR THE FIRST TIME, AND I LOST OVER FIVE POUNDS AND THAT WAS WITH ME STILL EATING.
UM, YEAH, YOU, YOU, YOU NEED TO EAT.
IS THE FLU VACCINE WORKING WELL THIS YEAR? IS THERE SEEMS TO BE NUMEROUS RESISTANCE CASES.
TONY PEDRO WITH BAYLOR VACCINE TREATMENT EVALUATION UNIT RECENTLY NOTED THAT THE MOST APPEAR TO BE H THREE N TWO.
UM, SO I'M GONNA READ MY NOTES,
SO THE SOUTHERN HEMISPHERES FLU HAS ENDED, UM, AND CHILE FOUND THAT FLU VACCINE IS A GOOD MATCH FOR THE CURRENT STRAIN.
UM, WHICH THEY SAID IS 49% EFFICACIOUS.
UM, THE PROBLEM IS THAT ONLY ABOUT 24% OF TEXAS RESIDENTS HAVE GOTTEN THE FLU VACCINE.
UM, HOSPITAL LABORATORIES ACROSS TEXAS, UM, VOLUNTARILY REPORT FLU TESTS.
SO THAT'S ANOTHER ISSUE JUST IN TERMS OF, OF MANAGING THE DATA AND WHAT WE'RE ABLE TO REALLY, UM, DISCERN.
UM, THE FLU IN ITSELF, UM, IS NOT A REPORTABLE DISEASE.
SO EVERYBODY WHO GETS THE FLU AND TO DR.
P'S POINT ABOUT THOSE WHO MAY NOT HAVE EVEN HAD A TEST AND JUST CLINICALLY YOU HAVE THE FLU, THERE'S, THERE'S, UH, UH, A LAG IN DATA COLLECTION AND THERE'S PROBABLY ABSOLUTELY SOME GAPS IN DATA COLLECTION.
SO THAT BEING SAID, UM, THE MOST COMMON INFLUENZA TYPE, UH, IS TYPE A, UH, A VIRUSES ARE CLASSIFIED INTO SUBTYPES.
UH, MOST COMMON H ONE N ONE AND THIS H THREE N TWO.
UM, BUT ONLY ABOUT 18% PERCENT OF THE VOLUNTARY REPORTED, UH, FLU TYPES WERE H THREE N TWO, WHICH IS APPEARING TO BE THE MOST PREVALENT.
BUT AGAIN, I DO WANNA EMPHASIZE THAT THERE IS ABSOLUTELY A LARGE GAP IN THE DATA.
AND SO WE'RE NOT REALLY CLEAR.
YEAH, COVID TESTS ARE ON A WAITING LIST IN SOME PHARMACIES IN HOUSTON.
WHAT'S THE HOLDUP? SO, UM, I'LL TELL YOU, I, I DON'T KNOW WHAT THE HOLDUP IS.
'CAUSE IN SOME PHARMACIES THERE'S PLENTY.
AND THEN THE OTHER THING IS THAT THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT JUST CAME OUT AND SAID THAT THEY'RE GONNA REINSTITUTE THE THING WHERE YOU CAN ORDER, UH, FREE TESTS AT HOME.
I THINK THAT WAS JUST A COUPLE OF DAYS AGO.
UM, I'VE ALREADY ORDERED MINE.
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AND, UM, I WOULD ENCOURAGE FOLKS TO DO THAT.SO, UM, IF YOUR PHARMACY IS OUT OF 'EM, JUST GO CHECK ANOTHER ONE NEARBY, OR YOU CAN GO TO COVID TESTS.GOV AND ORDER SOME, UH, FOR YOUR TO BE DELIVERED TO YOUR HOME BY THE UNITED STATES POSTAL SERVICE IN THE NEWS POTS, A DEBILITATING HEART CONDITION IS LINKED TO COVID AND TO A LESSER DEGREE VACCINE.
THAT'S JUST SAYING WHERE IT CAME REPORTED IN THE DALLAS MORNING NEWS.
ANY COMMENTS ON THAT? NOT REALLY.
IT JUST, THE THING THIS IS NOT, SO, I MEAN, YOU KNOW, PEOPLE ARE FINDING OUT THAT THEIR BLADDER IS A LITTLE BIT MORE SENSITIVE, AND SO THEY'RE URINATING MORE FREQUENTLY.
UH, THERE'S, IT DOESN'T SEEM TO BE ANY, YOU KNOW, TERRIBLE PATHOLOGY GOING ON.
AND, AND IT ALSO, LIKE SO MANY OF THESE OTHER COVID COMPLICATIONS, UH, APPEARS LIKE IT WILL GO AWAY IF YOU'RE ONE OF THE FOLKS WHO HAS THE OAS, THE OVERACTIVE, UH, BLADDERS SYNDROME THAT IT WILL EVENTUALLY GO AWAY.
BUT I, WHAT I REALLY THINK IS IMPORTANT FOR THE, THE DISCUSSION TODAY IS THE RECOGNIZE THAT, UH, COVID, THIS CORONAVIRUS IS DIFFERENT FROM MOST EVERY OTHER VIRUS IN THAT IT HAS AN ABILITY TO IMPACT ABSOLUTELY EVERY SINGLE ORGAN SYSTEM IN YOUR BODY.
WHEREAS MOST VIRUSES, THERE IS AN ORGAN SYSTEM THAT IT PREFERS TO BOTHER, LIKE RHINOVIRUS THE COLD.
IT'S YOUR NOSE, YOUR RUNNY NOSE, YOU GET STUFFY, YOU, YOU SNEEZE, YOU GET, YOU KNOW, IT'S MISERABLE AND YOU GOT, IT'S ALL PRETTY MUCH IN YOUR FACE.
UM, FLU BODY ACHES AND COUGH AND MAYBE SORE THROAT, BUT IT DOESN'T BOTHER YOUR BLADDER, DOESN'T BOTHER YOUR KIDNEYS GENERALLY.
UM, BUT SO THIS VIRUS IS UNIQUE IN THAT THERE IS NOT A SINGLE ORGAN SYSTEM THAT IT WILL NOT TAKE ADVANTAGE OF ONE WAY OR ANOTHER.
SO IT, THE, OR THE BLADDER JUST ANOTHER ORGAN SYSTEM THAT, YEAH, IT CAUSES PROBLEMS THERE TOO.
ARE THERE ANY CONCERNING REASONS THAT MR. MUSK IS USING A COURT PROCESS TO GET NEW AND OLD INFORMATION FROM DR.
FAUCI? I'M NOT FAMILIAR WITH THAT.
UH, I WILL SAY THIS THOUGH, FROM, UH, A PLUG FOR PUBLIC HEALTH.
UM, I THINK IT, YOU KNOW, REGARDLESS OF WHO'S SAYING WHO DID WHAT TO WHOM, AND WE NEED TO BE VERY CAREFUL ABOUT MISINFORMATION VERSUS SCIENTIFIC EVIDENCE-BASED RESEARCHED, UM, HEALTHCARE FACT, UM, AND MAKING SURE THAT WE'RE PROTECTING OUR COMMUNITIES.
FORTUNE MAGAZINE SAID THE SURGEON GENERAL URGED AMERICANS TO TAKE PRECAUTIONS ABOUT VIRUSES.
YOU THINK HOW
I THINK THAT WAS JUST A COMMENT.
ERICA BROWN, REPRESENTING HARRIS COUNTY.
DR. DAVID PERCH REPRESENTED THE CI CITY OF HOUSTON.
SPECIAL THANKS, THE PAST PRESIDENT OF ROTARY CLUB OF HOUSTON, KATHY FINNER, AND TO OUR PRODUCERS, UH, PRISCILLA KIA AND MALIK GOLDMAN.
I'M STEVEN WILLIAMS, THE DIRECTOR OF THE HOUSTON HEALTH DEPARTMENT.