HJBR May/Jun 2020

DIALOGUE 10 MAY / JUN 2020 I  HEALTHCARE JOURNAL OF BATON ROUGE   Editor From a public health perspective, COVID-19 seems to be the inevitable pan- demic we feared. There are many theories about how this began. What is your opinion? Robert Hart, MD We’ve heardmany theories about its origin, but our concentration has been focused on the spread and treatment of this disease. We know that this virus is very infective, and with any novel virus, we have no immunity. We haven’t seen anything like this in our lifetime, and we’re in amuch different place than we were back in 1918 during a similar pandemic. Today, our abil- ity to travel anywhere in the world helped COVID-19 spread very quickly. We’re also armed with more technology and knowl- edge now than ever before in our history, helping us to better respond and manage this pandemic. Editor  Nationally, our healthcare system seems to have been caught flat-footed by the demand for protective gear, and the supply chain has proven fragile. How has your orga- nization handled this? Hart This situation is challenging in that every area of the world needed the same supplies, putting an enormous strain on manufacturers to keep up with demand. The fact that manufacturing in China was affected also contributed to limited avail- ability of PPE to the rest of the world. We started preparations early when we began seeing evidence of COVID-19 in Europe. We assembled a team to monitor the virus and make sure we were properly equipped. Our supply chain teamworks 24/7, and ramped up our efforts to source PPE and supplies very quickly. Louisiana is lucky in that we are very resilient and resourceful. We saw local businesses step up to help manufac- ture and donate PPE to healthcare providers. Editor Louisiana, Washington, California, and New York had an early higher concen- tration of COVID-19 cases than other states. Some believeMardi Gras was the cause of such rapid spread of SARS-CoV-2 in our state. Are you seeing evidence to support that theory? Hart We believe this was in our community before Mardi Gras, and at that time, there was no evidence to do things differently or cancel large gatherings. Mardi Gras not only attracts people fromall over the country and the world, but many Louisiana residents also travel with their families outside of the state over this holiday. The number of peo- ple coming in and leaving our communities may have made it a good seeding ground for the virus. Editor  What do you think will happen when stay at home orders are lifted? Hart  When the orders are lifted, people will get out more, but we’ve seen people be more cautious and very deliberate in their efforts to keep distance. We expect to see an increase in cases, but have been encour- aged that we haven’t seen a notable spike in the two weeks following the Easter holidays. People have been very mindful about hand washing and keeping social distance, and that’s encouraging as we approach reopen- ing our communities. Editor  What are themajor changes that have beenmade at your facilities in response to this pandemic? Hart  We’ve made many changes, and are continuing to identify ways to make sure our providers, staff, patients, and visi- tors are safe. At the guidance of Governor