Island Task Force discusses Hanley’s COVID action plan
The Pine Island Pandemic Task Force held its monthly meeting Monday, Feb. 21, in an effort to keep islanders safe and informed through the pandemic.
Task Force mentor Dr. Daniel Hanley went over his COVID action plan where underlying medical conditions are concerned, saying, if someone has a previously recognized comorbidity, they can get into trouble with the virus.
“Whether they feel sick or not, they should still take their usual medicines. They shouldn’t back off. If they have symptoms, say a cough or a stuffy nose, they should take over-the-counter medicine that they have taken before — something that works for them — safe medicines they can get from the pharmacy,” Hanley said.
The dangerous area, he said, is where people are feeling very badly and need to be treated aggressively. According to Dr. James Koopman, another Task Force member,the availability of effective treatment is increasing, although, not as quickly as first was predicted.
“When it comes to preventing severe illness in those who just started having symptoms, the sooner you can get treatment the better and more effective it is,” Koopman said.
Fellow Task Force member Martha Huard suggesting adding to the COVID action plan that if someone has underlying medical conditions, they should contact their primary physician regarding possible anti-vital treatment.
Hanley’s concern was telling people to seek anti-viral treatment that may or may not be available. He is also concerned about sending people to the hospital unnecessarily.
“The hospitals may have these medicines, but we can’t just send everybody to the hospital … a person could wait 15 hours just to be seen in an emergency — to get a doctor could take days. My default is to try to keep people away from the hospital,” Hanley said.
Huard pointed out that in an effort to avoid clogging up the hospital, she ended up with an oxygen saturation level of 82 in the ER.
“If you’re in chemo therapy and test positive for COVID, I think it might be worth going to the hospital,” Huard said.
Huard said it’s important to remind people that after someone feels they have recovered from COVID there are possible complications that may come up, such as blood clots or urinary symptoms and they should not hesitate to contact their doctor.
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