WATCH OUT FOR CONSTRUCTION WORK ON I-196 BETWEEN IONIA AVEENU AND I-96 EASTBOUND. ON DECEMBER 12TH, 20-19, A CLUSTER OF PATIENTS IN WUHAN, CHINA BEGAN REPORTED STRGEAN RESPIRATORY SYMPTOMS— ….SOME COULDN'T BREATHE, OTHERS COULDN'T KNOCK DOWN THEIR FEVERS, AND THERE WAS NO ANSWER FOR *WHAT THEY WERE SICK WITH. IT WAS LATER FOUND THEY HAD A TYPE OF INFECTIOUS DISEA,SE CALLED COVID9.-1 IT HAS NOW BEEN TWO YEARS TO THE DAY THAT COVID-19 HAS BEEN PTAR OF OUR LIVES.
TWO YEARS OF QUESTIONS, UNCERTAINTY, FEAR AND FRUSTRATIO.NS IT HAS ALSO SHOOK THE FUNDAMENTAL CORE OF MICHIGAN'' HEALTHCARE SYSTEMS. THERE'S SO MUCH LEARNING THAT HAD TBEO DONE AND SO MANY CHANGES. I SPOKE WITH HEALTHCARE LEADSER IN THE STATE ABOUT WHAT THE FUTURE OF OUR HEALTHCARE SYSTEMS COULD LOOK LIKE AFTER ALOF THIS IS OVER. IT WAS LATE IN 20-19 THAT WE FIRST HEARD THE WHISPERS OF A MYSTERIOUS VIRUS IDENTIFIED IN CHINA. HERE IN THE U.S., HEALTH OFFICIALS WERE KEEPING THEIR EYES ON IT, BUT WEREN'T TOO CONCERNED. Dr. Andrew Jameson – division chief of infectious diseases, Mercy Health :20-:25 "Yeah, you know, to be frank, we kind of put it off." ************** INFORMATION WAS LIMITED, BUT THE CASE COUNT AROUND THE WORLD QUICKLY GREW.
THEN IN JANUARY OF 2020, THE VIRUS OFFFICALLY MADE ITS WAY TO THE S.U. Elizabeth Hertel Michigan Department of Health and Human Services 2:08-2:25 "Once we had learned that there was a confirmed case in the Unedit States. We knew that it would be here in Michigan,nd a so we were just waiting on that confirmation. It was it was a little scary." WE SAW SHORTAGES ON EVERYTHING FROM MASKS, TO MEAT, TO THE INFAMOUS TOILET PAPER FLYING OFF E THSHELVES.
THE NATION HAD NEVER HAD TO GRAPPLE WITH SOMETHING LIKE THISIN RECENT HISTY.OR THEN THE FEAR AND PANIC SET IN FOR NOT ONLY EVERYY DAPEOPLE, BUT FOR HEALTHCARE WORKERS WHO WEREN'T SURE IF THEY WOULDIC PK UP THE HIGHLY-TRANSMISSABLE VIRUS EVERYTIME THEY WENT INTO WORK. Dr. Andrew Jameson – division chief of infectious diseases, Mercy Health 5:05-5:09 "There was a lot going on. And it was extremely frightening early on." LEADERS ON BOTH THE FEDERAL AND STATE LEVEL TRIED TO PREDICT WHAT TO DO TO TRY TO PREVENT THE SPREAD OF A DISEASE WE KNEW SO LITTLE ABOUT. Governor Gretchen Whitmer :01 "Today I am issuing a stay home, stay safe executive order for all Michiganders." STILL, HOSPITALS QUICKLY FILLED UP.
Elizabeth Hertel Michigan Department of Health and Hanum Services 5:42-5:58 "It was challenging, and it was very stressful. And we were seeing a really, really high mortality rate." SPECTRUM HEALTH WAS DEALING WITH LIMITED RESOURCE AND AN INFLUX OF PATIENTS. Chad Tuttle Senior VP of hospital operations, Spectrum Health 1:49-15:5 "We didn't know how to test for it. We didn't know how to treat it. And we didn't know what was coming our way." FOR TWO YEARS CASES, DEATHS AND HOSPITALIZATIONS IN THE STATE ROSE IN WAVES AND HIT MULTIPLE PEAKS THE STATE'S HEALTH DIRECTOR SAYS THE TURNING POINT CAME IN DECEMBER OF 20-20.
Elizabeth Hertel Michigan Department of Health and Human Services 9:03-9:19 "And then we had this amazing, amazing breakthrough in medical technology with the formulation of not only one vaccine, but three vaccines." ******** NOW HOSPITALS ARE EXPERIENCING YET ANOTHER PEAK, OVERWHELMED WITH MOSTLY UNVACCINATED PATIENTS. INFECTIOUS DISEASE EXPERTS, FRUSTRATED BY WHAT THEY'RE SEEING. Dr. Andrew Jameson – division chief of infectious diseases, Mercy Health 17:03-17:09 "And we would not be in the situation we're in right now, if we had better uptake with vaccines." LOOKING TO THE FUTURE — THE PANDEMIC FORCED HOSPITALS TO IMPLEMENT PRACTICES THAT WILL MOST LIKELY STICK AROUNDOR F YEARS TO COME. HOSPITALS ARE ALSO WORKING TOGETHER IN WAYS LIKE NEVER BEFORE. Chad Tuttle Senior VP of hospital operations, Spectrum Health 10:57-116:0 "I would say we're more collaborative than we've ever been.
We talk with other health systems, other hospitals dai,ly we share resources, we share knowledge and information." AND WHILE WE HAVE LEARNED SO MUCH OVER THE LAST TWO YEA -RS FROM NOT KNOWING WHAT COVID WAS, TO HAVING ACCESSABLE TESTING, TO FINALLY HAVING A VACCINE THE IS STILL A LOT MORE TO LEA.RN SINCE THE FIRST CASE WAS REPORTED IN MICHIGAN BACK IN MARCH OF LAST YEAR… THE STATE HAS REPORTED OVER ONE MILLION, 3 HUNDRED AND0 5 THOUSAND CASES. AND EXPERTS BELIEVE THE NUMBER IS POSSIBLY QUITE LARGER WITH THOSE WHO NEVER GOT TESTED WHILE SICK. FIVE MILLION MICHIGANDERS HAVE GOTTEN BOTH DOSES OF THE VACCINE.
