Wednesday, April 8, 2020

Pandemic journal - Monday, April 6-Tuesday, April 7, 2020

Yesterday (Tuesday) I had some adventures. 

I took my newly-acquired cloth mask and drove to Tallahassee Primary Care Associates for bloodwork.  TPCA has it going on, for sure.  Two ladies sat at a table outside the front door and did a little screening interview:  have I traveled?  am I sick? do I have a fever? have I been around anyone who is sick?  Since all my answers were in the negative, they then asked what I was there for, and I said bloodwork.  Their response was funny:  "Go ahead, you should get right in, you are the only one here."

And sure enough, I was the only one in the waiting area.  I went right in, was greeted by the lab tech, sat right down - and couldn't figure out what to do with my big fat purse.  So I kept it in my lap, trying not to touch the arms of the chair. This is truly an alternate universe.

A big downside of wearing a cloth mask:  muffled speech.  Plus no one can see me smile. I felt myself smiling at people. I wondered if they were smiling at me. I don't think I like this mask thing at all.

After the lab, I stopped at Publix to pick up a prescription and the four things they didn't have when I shopped on Friday.  They had all four.  Now I am resolved to stay away from Publix for two weeks, for sure.

Positive tests continue to show up in our county.  I'm truly worried about how our hospitals will cope. My feeling is that the lack of quick turnaround testing has so seriously exacerbated this problem that even our little community might be overwhelmed.  Since folks showing up at the hospital are untested, the assumption must be that they have the virus, thereby calling for full PPE for staff who care for them.  The vast majority turn out to not have the virus, but much safety equipment has been expended over the ridiculous amount of time it takes to get test results.  This is inefficiency and dangerous mismanagement of the highest order.

Assigning blame at this point seems to be a waste of time - but I continue to feel that NO ONE IS TRYING TO FIX IT.  We so desperately need a quick turnaround test.  I know they exist - powerful people are getting it.  Why isn't it available at least for our hospitals?  No one seems to be able to answer that question.

Uncertainty.  It's getting increasingly tough to deal with.

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