Vanderhoff: 1 in 8 hospitalized with COVID

Unvaccinated make up majority of hospitalizations

By CALLAN PUGH 

City editor 

COLUMBUS — Statewide, around one in eight patients in the hospital has COVID-19, according to Ohio Department of Health Director Bruce Vanderhoff. One out of five patients in the ICU is battling COVID-19. 

In rural hospitals one in four patients are hospitalized with COVID-19 and one in three in the ICU is battling COVID-19, Vanderhoff said at a press conference Thursday. 

He noted that COVID-19 hospitalizations and ICU admissions are about 10 times higher than they were in July, and unvaccinated Ohioans are “far and away” the patients filling hospital beds in what Vanderhoff called a “hospital pandemic of the unvaccinated,” with less than 2.5% of the hospitalizations since January occurring among vaccinated individuals.

“In the past week in Ohio, more than 3,000 cases of COVID-19 have been reported every day,” Vanderhoff said. “Most frequently, we’ve seen higher than 4,000 or 5,000 cases reported on a single day. Although not the highest numbers we have on record, these highs compare to figures that we reported during our winter surge, and are more than 10 times what we experienced as recently as early July.”

All 88 Ohio counties are above the CDC’s threshold for high rates of transmission of COVID-19 Vanderhoff said.

Ohio’s averages for cases per 100,000 over the last two weeks has hovered at around 400 cases per 100,000 — well above the CDC’s 100 cases per 100,000 population that indicates a high rate of transmission, Vanderhoff explained. Every county in Ohio now has more than 100 cases per 100,000 residents, and some are upwards of 1,000. He stressed that the highest case rates are primarily found in counties with lower vaccination rates.

“Because every single county in Ohio has a high transmission rate, residents should take precautions — most notably choosing to be vaccinated, but also choosing to wear a mask in situations where appropriate distancing simply can’t be maintained,” Vanderhoff said. “This added layer of protection is crucial, particularly as we fight the highly contagious delta variant.”

Vanderhoff said the surge is reminiscent of the surge seen in the winter before vaccines were available. Masking and more Ohioans getting vaccinated he said will be crucial as the state grapples with the highly contagious delta variant. Vaccination and masking, he said, will help protect against severe illness and death caused by COVID-19 and will help prevent further dangerous variants from emerging.

“As a result of this dangerous variant, we are seeing people of all ages getting sicker quicker and requiring hospital care,” Vanderhoff said. “We all need to work together to get a higher rate of community protection. We all need to choose to be vaccinated. Vaccines along with masks also help keep our kids in school — in person, learning five days a week, which has long been our goal.”

Schooling in a pandemic

Vanderhoff noted that in-person learning continues to be important but will require extra measures as more children are getting sick from COVID-19 and other surges in respiratory illness. He said schools that aren’t already should strongly consider requiring masking in schools regardless of vaccination status.

Dr. Hector Wong, an ICU physician and head of critical care at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital said as families grapple with increased risk of illness this school year there are several steps he would suggest taking to keep students safe. Families should vaccinate eligible children, which currently includes those ages 12 and up, Wong said, noting that it’s the single most effective tool to combat the pandemic. Additionally, he reminded parents that flu season is coming up and it will remain important to have children vaccinated against the flu again this year. 

Other “common sense approaches” suggested by Wong include keeping children away from those who are sick and away from crowded areas. When a child is sick, he said, it’s more important than ever to keep them home from school. Masking while indoors, particularly in schools, remains important as well, Wong said.

Also important at this time, Wong said, is checking in on children’s mental health.

“Many of us adults aren’t doing well with this, so I think it’s a safe bet to say that our kids aren’t doing well either,” Wong said. “I think sometimes just a simple act of saying, ‘how are you doing, let’s talk about it’ can go a long way. Please be cognizant that the mental health impact of this pandemic on kids is underappreciated by many. It’s as big a factor as the effects of the virus.”

(Continued on page 2)

(Continued from page 1)

Addressing masking, 

vaxing concerns

Addressing concerns about students consistently masking in schools, Wong said he had heard a few themes that come up regularly including masks causing low oxygen or causing carbon dioxide retention.

“That’s simply not true,” Wong said. “Air flows through these masks very easily. Carbon dioxide and oxygen are very small molecules. They pass through that freely. There is no risk of having low oxygen or carbon dioxide accumulation from masks. There was a study out there that suggested that. I think it’s important to note, that study was retracted.

“From a practical standpoint please remember that surgeons, operating room staff, us folks in the ICU, we wear masks for 10, 12 hours at a time caring for patients and we’re not getting oxygen deprivation or [carbon dioxide] accumulation.”

Wong also said he’s heard that people believe that by wearing masks a person who is sick with COVID-19 will “re-breath the virus and stay sick longer.”

“That’s just not how biology works, so there is no increased risk of having ongoing infection from the mask,” Wong said.

Regarding emotional well-being from mask usage, Wong said there isn’t data to refute or support such effects of mask usage on children. Instead, he said he would balance these concerns with known health effects of not being in school, being quarantined and not learning.

“The concerns of mental health because of masks are far outweighed by the concerns of missing school, being quarantined, not being with your peers,” Wong said. “With respect to masks in school, I think we need to shift the conversation and rather than get into whether masks work or not and safety around masks, I think we need to shift the conversation to what’s most important. And I think what’s most important … is keeping kids in school five days a week, in person learning.”

View from the bedside

Dr. Brian Taylor, the inpatient medical director for Central Ohio Primary Care Hospitalists, said he’s seeing a lot more primary diagnoses of COVID-19, meaning people are coming in specifically because they are sick, rather than being diagnosed as part of routine screening when visiting the hospital for other reasons compared to last year. Most patients he’s seen are unvaccinated with around 80% to 90% of those with COVID in the hospital being unvaccinated and, in the ICUs, a higher percentage above 90%.

The hospitals are continuing to see individuals with risk factors like immunosuppression and diabetes and obesity, but hospitals also are seeing the young and the well continuing to get sick and requiring oxygen or the ICU who don’t have past medical issues.

“That’s a trend in the scary way in that you don’t want to see people without those risk factors that sick,” Taylor said.

ODH asks Ohioans 

for help

Vanderhoff asked that Ohioans help curb the spread of COVID with vaccinations and mask wearing, especially in schools regardless of a student or staff member’s vaccination status. 

Additionally, Vanderhoff said those concerned about having COVID-19 should be sure to get tested at community providers or at home with the help of a telehealth provider with the BinaxNOW testing kits, available locally at the Carey and Upper Sandusky libraries.

“Finally, as we approach the Labor Day holiday, I urge Ohioans to follow safe COVID practices,” Vanderhoff said. “If you’re in an area where social distancing isn’t possible and you’re not vaccinated, you should definitely wear a mask and you should strongly consider one even if you are vaccinated. Please help us prevent the spread of COVID-19 and other respiratory illnesses this holiday by making choices that protect you and the people around you.”