People fear hospitalisation

Covid-19 has created many fears. Since the pandemic started, people often ask me if it is safe to go to hospital for routine procedures or to take their children to hospital for procedures. "Isn't that where Covid spreads?"

Yet they go to malls and shops, visit friends for a braai (without wearing masks). They take the kids to school where they can potentially be exposed to asymptomatic Covid-spreaders (and from school to granny and grandpa to look after them!).

With the 4th wave looming and yet another variant creating new fears and unknowns, this thought certainly is in many people's minds again. And, yes, there certainly is reason for concern. But the dangers are definitely not big enough to neglect your general health or that of your loved ones. Let's look at the bigger picture. Let's try to see things in a more positive perspective:

Screening

In most public places there is no screening at all. Perhaps temperature screening with a dubious thermometer (temperature screening has limited value anyway because many Covid-spreaders never develop a fever). In almost all hospitals, on the other hand, you will need to complete a short questionnaire about symptoms and exposure before entering.

Zones

And this is only the start of our efforts to ensure your safety. Hospitals have by now developed tried and tested separation methods for their admissions. All symptomatic and potentially positive patients are taken directly to red isolation zones. Here rapid Covid tests or urgent PCR-tests are performed to confirm the presence of Covid. Urgent admissions for other reasons (e.g. injuries) are taken to the yellow PUI (patient under investigation) zone where they remain until their Covid status is known. Routine admissions have to get a Covid PCR-test done one or two days before admission. Some hospital groups now do the rapid test on admission for day-cases. They go straight to the green zone once negative status had been confirmed (or admission is postponed by 10-14 days if they are positive). These zones are physically separated from each other in various ways, depending on the layout of the hospital. Yes, unfortunately it means that you (or your child, or both) will need to have a Covid test before admission, but at least it gives you the comforting knowledge that everyone in that area had been tested and is negative.

Staff work in shifts and teams and are allocated to specific zones per shift, limiting movement between zones. Key staff that need to work in different zones during one shift, have strict protocols and areas of putting on and taking off extra protective layers of clothing and PPE when entering and exiting red areas. Staff members are also trained to wear their masks at all times. They perform hand sanitation before and after patient contact, thereby limiting the chance of infection being spread from one patient to the next.

Sanitizing

Our next "layer" of protection is having sanitizer available in numerous visible and easily reachable places for everyone's use. Your allocated bed is your safe place. If you have to move around or touch "public" areas, you can simply sanitize again when you get back in your personal safe zone.

Limited numbers

One of the unfortunate but essential safety measures is limitation of numbers in hospital. This means that, especially during peak Covid times, visitation is limited. Only one parent will be allowed in hospital with a child. This may again vary between different hospitals and hospital groups.

Limited LOS

Different conditions and procedures demand different lengths of stay in hospital. My policy is, within practical and medical needs and guidelines, to allow discharge from hospital sooner rather than later, reducing hospital stay time to the minimum.

Covid will be with us for the unforeseeable future. We need to find ways to continue all aspects of  our daily living in the best way possible and that certainly includes looking after our general health and well-being.