Articles Tagged with Covid-19

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Even  though the elderly are at risk of major complications from Covid- 19,  most  nursing homes around the country used alarmingly  low levels of antiviral drugs that are proven to fight symptoms of the deadly disease on their residents, during the pandemic. The failure to use appropriate medications could lead to a larger number of malpractice claims.

While the Covid- 19 pandemic ravaged large portions of the metro Atlanta region, especially in the above-65 age category,  efforts were made to deliver more life- saving antiviral medications to these sections of the population.  Use  of the antiviral drugs was  higher in nursing homes than in the general community.  However,  a new study finds that a large number of nursing homes administered very low levels of the drugs.

In fact, shockingly, the study found that  as many as 40% of nursing homes did not use antiviral drugs as of the end of 2022.  The use of antiviral drugs in these facilities was low even as the pandemic gathered steam, and continued to remain low even after the medications were approved as oral drugs.  In  fact, according to the researchers, residents  with Covid- 19 in  only about 18% of the nursing homes were treated with antiviral medications.

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The pandemic has required many to stay at home from work and school, leaving far few vehicles on the roads,  However, contrary to expectations, the number of highway accident deaths in the United States actually increased significantly during the first half of 2020. This was in spite of the lower traffic volumes during the pandemic.

As the Covid-19 pandemic began spreading across the United States, many states including Georgia imposed shelter-in-place orders, discouraging travel, and shutting down businesses. This led to significant drops in traffic volumes from March right through June this year.

That should typically have resulted in lower accident death rates. This, however, has not happened. If anything, the highway fatality rate has actually increased. According to the National Safety Council, there has been a significant 20% increase in the number of highway accident deaths in the first 6 months of 2020, compared to the same period of time in 2019. This increase has occurred even in the face of lower traffic volumes, as a result of the pandemic. The highway accident death rate has increased even though there was a 17% drop in the number of miles travelled by American motorists in the first 6 months of 2020.

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The Covid-19 pandemic has required restaurants, hotels, malls and other commercial establishments that are open in Georgia to adopt certain protocols to maintain safe health standards.  However, sanitization and social distancing protocols at these facilities may actually increase the risks of slip and falls at these establishments.

Businesses are now expected to protect not just employees, but also patrons, including customers and guests.  Facility Executive, a publication that caters to facility maintenance, has advice for businesses that are looking to reopen in the new “normal.”   The new sanitization protocols can lead to the creation of several unsafe slip and fall risk zones around an establishment.  It is important for businesses to identify these potential slip and fall risk zones, and take steps to mitigate the risks of fall accidents in these areas.

At many of these businesses, handwashing protocols will reign supreme. The areas around hand sanitization and washing stations are at special risk. Many of these handwashing counters are situated right at the entrance, which means a greater possibility of spillage of liquids and sanitizers on the floor, comprising a possible fall risk, when people enter the establishment.

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The pandemic and shelter-in-place restrictions across Georgia and the country have resulted in an increase in the number of children suffering dog bites.

A new study has found that there was an increase in the number of dog bites involving children between spring and summer this year.  The researchers involved in the study are directly attributing this increase in dog bite attacks involving children to the shelter-in-place restrictions, as well as the increased stress brought on by the pandemic.

The research was conducted by a pediatric emergency department which reported a startling increase in the number of children reporting to the emergency department with injuries suffered in dog bites during spring and summer this year.  The increase was as much as 3 times higher, compared to the same period of time last year.  The results of the study were published in the Journal of Pediatrics recently.

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Nursing homes that have lower rankings by federal agencies have been much more likely to have resident deaths related to Covid-19.

According to the director of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, nursing homes ranked low by the agency’s nursing home ranking tool have seen higher numbers of Covid-19 deaths, compared to nursing homes that were ranked higher by the ranking tool.

This information provides valuable input for families who are looking for nursing homes for their loved ones in a post -pandemic world. By now, it’s clear that many nursing homes were ill-equipped to handle the patient care challenges resulting from the pandemic. Understaffing is a chronic problem in nursing homes across the country, and has already been blamed for the explosion of cases in nursing homes.

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With boating season upon us, the U.S. Coast Guard is recommending that all boaters take some extra steps to stay safe on the water.

The number of boaters on Georgia’s lakes is likely to increase over the next few weeks as Georgians begin to enjoy being out after several weeks of shelter-in-place measures.

Boating is a safe activity from the point of view of social distancing, when compared to other types of activities such as visits to amusement parks. Boating offers a great opportunity for smaller groups to be away from other people, thereby ensuring that social distancing is maintained. However, there are still some things you need to keep in mind before you plan boating trips with family or friends this summer.

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All throughout the country, nursing home residents have been one of the hardest hit groups of the Covid-19 pandemic.  The same deadly results have been seen in Georgia as well.  According to estimates, as many as 50 percent of the fatalities in the state have involved residents of nursing homes.

The Georgia Department of Community Health recently released Covid-19 fatality numbers and the results are frightening. The data suggests that more than 6,000 residents and staff members of nursing homes in Georgia are currently infected with the virus. About 350 facilities in the state are currently grappling with the outbreak. About 20 percent of all Covid-19 cases in Georgia have occurred in nursing homes and 659 deaths have been linked to nursing homes.

The picture is even bleaker in the rural parts of Georgia.  The virus, which was earlier believed to be confined to urban areas, has spread with staggering speed in rural areas.  These counties, with predominantly poor or African American populations have been affected disproportionately by the outbreak, and nursing homes in these regions have seen an alarming spike in death tolls.

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There is no debate the events surrounding COVID-19 are unlike any that this country, and the globe for that matter, has experienced.  The impacts of this disease on our communities will include a once unthinkable number of illnesses, hospitalizations, and deaths.

Although efforts have been made to trace the source of the disease in local areas in order to notify others that may have come in contact with or been exposed to someone with the disease, many of these efforts that not been entirely successful, hence the widespread contagiousness of the disease.

One source that has been known early on in the COVID-19 outbreak are the cruise ships that had passengers with confirmed cases on board.  Recent numbers have indicated that as many as 700 people became infected with COVID-19 on cruise ships.  A number of these passengers went on to die from the illness.  As news of the outbreaks and quarantined passengers broke, some of the cruise lines, including Princess Cruises, took preemptive measures and cancelled any future cruises.

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The recent times have been unprecedented in our country.  Preparations from medical to supply chain are being made across the country to meet the needs and demands of the Covid-19 pandemic.

To aid in delivering goods and supplies, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration has decided to relax some of the Hours–of–Service regulations that truck drivers are required to adhere to, in order to meet the increased shipping needs caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.

Hand sanitizers, alcohol wipes, masks and other medical essentials are all in short supply in many states across the country. Panic buying, which has been seen across the country since it became clear that the Covid-19 virus outbreak would be more serious than we believed, has meant many empty shelves at supermarkets and stores across the country. People are running short of basic essentials, including even food items in many areas.

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