Spectrum Health Lakeland CEO Gives COVID-19 Update

lakelandhospital2-21
lakelandhospital2-21

Spectrum Health Lakeland CEO Loren Hamel thinks Governor Gretchen Whitmer’s newly revised stay home order is a good thing. During a Friday briefing with the Berrien County Health Department, Hamel said opening certain businesses and activities that keep people occupied while socially distancing is a smart move.

“It’s a very well thought out plan, and I think we should stick with it,” Hamel said.

Hamel said at the hospital in St. Joseph, they’ve worked to ensure people can receive treatment for non COVID-19 problems and still be safe. He noted healthcare workers aren’t getting coronavirus when they use their PPE. As far as testing, he said it isn’t a good use of the supply to test people who are don’t have symptoms.

“It really doesn’t make much sense to just test somebody who’s curious because it’s going to be a negative test.”

In addition to getting more tests for the illness, Hamel said they’re working on increasing the antibody tests to know when someone has already had COVID-19. Then there’s the plasma transfusions. The hospital last week transfused plasma from a recovered patient into a currently infected patient with the idea antibodies in the plasma would help the patient who was sick.

“This is potentially a life-saving procedure, and we are so encouraged by the number of folks that have called in and said ‘Can I be considered to be a donor?’”

Hamel said he doesn’t believe Berrien County will see a peak as in hotspots. Rather, he said as long as people follow social distancing guidelines, we’ll remain in a “blunted curve” where there are always new cases being found, but not so many the health system is overrun.

“We are living in a blunted curve. We’re not going to see the peak, I believe, that New York saw or Detroit saw.”

As things are now, Hamel revealed about 80% of the COVID-19 tests done in Berrien County are negative, and about 20% positive. You can stay on top of local coronavirus developments at the Berrien County Health Department’s website.