DeWine calls out COVID-19 deniers: ‘This foolishness has got to stop’
COLUMBUS — Most people haven't witnessed the ugliness and tragedy of the coronavirus pandemic up close.
The grim details — like the freezer truck needed for keeping corpses cold or the sight of nurses' raw, chafed faces after hours of wearing masks — are largely confined to hospitals and nursing homes. Behind the walls of these facilities, health care workers are getting desperate as cases and hospitalizations show no signs of plateauing.
Dr. Andy Thomas, chief clinical officer at The Ohio State University's Wexner Medical Center, said more than 5,000 Ohioans are currently hospitalized with COVID-19, up from 1,700 Nov. 1. Just today, Ohio saw hospitalizations increase by 357 patients.
The state expects we likely won't see the impact of recent Thanksgiving gatherings on hospitals for several weeks.
To humanize the crisis, Gov. Mike DeWine during a rare Monday briefing, gave the floor to overwhelmed health care workers staffing Ohio's hospitals during this unprecedented surge.
Because visitors are prohibited in most hospitals, nurses and other health care workers are not only managing a deluge of patients; they're also required to stand in as patients' loved ones and friends, even holding patients' hands as they die alone.
"The people that they are used to sharing their daily lives with are no longer able to come in and see them. So, not only are we being caregivers, we're becoming the extended family to those residents," said Carrie Watkins, the assistant director of nursing at Genacross Lutheran Health Services near Toledo.
Watkins shared the story of a nurse who returned from maternity leave. She had worked for years on a floor of 22 residents. When she returned, nearly half of the residents had died.
"They didn't get discharged home. They didn't go to another room. They were gone," said Watkins. "The emotion I saw in her face, coming back to that and not being there during that time was devastating."
While she would like Ohioans to understand the current plight of healthcare workers, Dara Pence, an ICU nurse manager at OhioHealth Riverside Methodist Hospital in Columbus, said, "I don't wish anybody to see what we have seen."
When asked about the state's vocal COVID-19 contrarians — several of whom are legislators from his own party trying to impeach him — Gov. Mike DeWine urged them to listen to the stories of healthcare workers, like those featured during the briefing.
"At some point, this foolishness has got to stop," he said. "I'm not talking about most Ohioans, just a small number of people who continue for whatever reason to act as if this is some big joke. And that this is all some fantasy. I don't know how you watch these nurses or talk to them and hear them without understanding that ... This is not fantasy. This is not made up. These are real nurses. These are real doctors. These are real people reporting this."
Other news
• According to the latest figures Monday from the Ohio Department of Health, the state is reporting 421,063 confirmed or suspected cases of the coronavirus. There have been 8,405 confirmed or suspected cases in Mahoning County; 6,252 in Trumbull County; and 3,902 in Columbiana County.
• Statewide, there have been 6,429 confirmed or suspected COVID-19 deaths, including 301 in Mahoning County; 150 in Trumbull; and 99 in Columbiana. Mahoning County's 301 reported COVID-19 deaths on Monday was sixth among Ohio's 88 counties; Cuyahoga County had the most with 746.
• In nearby counties: Stark, 10,589 cases and 222 deaths; Portage, 4,063 cases and 75 deaths; and Ashtabula, 2,573 cases and 55 deaths.
• Youngstown State University reported 29 new coronavirus cases on Monday according to the university's dashboard. Of the new cases, 23 were reported by students who live off-campus, one case was reported by a student living on-campus and five cases were reported by employees. YSU reported 249 total cases from Aug. 1 through Nov. 21.
• According to the Pennsylvania Department of Health on Monday, there were 361,464 COVID-19 cases in the state which have led to 10,383 deaths. The state said the recovery rate is 60 percent. There have been 2,885 confirmed or suspected cases in Mercer County and 49 deaths; 2,206 cases in Lawrence County and 68 deaths.
• DeWine announced $28 million of federal CARES Act funding will be used to address air quality at long-term care facilities and adult day centers. Eligible recipients can receive up to $15,000. Applications are available at bwc.ohio.gov.
• State employees were expected to return in-person to work starting in January. The return has been delayed. DeWine also encouraged other employers to allow remote work.
• OH WOW! The Roger & Gloria Jones Children's Center for Science & Technology has canceled its Tuesday groundbreaking ceremony due to the local spike in COVID-19 cases. A grand re-opening is planned for May 25, 2021.
• The Mahoning County Farm Bureau will deliver 4,500 pounds of beef and 500 pounds of chicken to Second Harvest Food Bank of the Mahoning Valley today. Other supporters, including Columbiana County Farm Bureau, Daprile Insurance Group and Nationwide Insurance, contributed to the effort. Ohio Beef Council also provided a matching grant.
• Youngstown City School District's weekly food distribution resumes Wednesday. The distribution will be from 2 to 5 p.m. at East, Chaney, Paul C. Bunn, Volney Rogers, Martin Luther King, Harding, Wilson and Williamson schools. YCSD suspended the weekly food distribution earlier this month because of a spike in coronavirus cases.
This story was originally published December 1, 2020 at 1:17 PM with the headline "DeWine calls out COVID-19 deniers: ‘This foolishness has got to stop’."