MHS in South Florida to join forces with Caribbean colleagues against COVID-19
The Memorial Healthcare System (MHS) in South Florida shares words of wisdom with Caribbean colleagues, to join forces against COVID-19 pandemic.
Press Release – The COVID-19 pandemic has changed the ways that people work, communicate, and socialize, giving birth to this “new normality” that, though widely discussed, remains foreign to most of humanity. Many have lost their loved ones and others have won the fight against the deadly virus, but one of the things that hasn’t changed is the commitment that the Memorial Healthcare System in South Florida has to its patients throughout this pandemic under the direction of Dr. Paula A. Eckardt, Chief of Memorial’s Division of Infectious Disease, who works alongside a highly trained team in critical care, nursing and laboratory.
COVID-19 directly affects the respiratory system, which is why it has been so difficult to attack and, at the same time, spreads very easily. Dr Paula A. Eckardt, Chief of Infectious Disease at Memorial Healthcare System, together with the team of doctors and nurses at the hospital, has successfully followed strict hygiene levels, temperature screening, physical distancing, and virtual methods to assist in reducing the virus transmission.
Except for the Dominican Republic (with more than 27,000 coronavirus cases), the Caribbean islands are a low-impact COVID-19 zone. Nonetheless, taking the right precautions will be the best way to stop the virus from spreading and maintaining this area as safely as possible. Dr Eckardt has followed all CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) guidelines and recommends for all medical institutions to take extreme precautions and to stay alert to a possible COVID-19 rebound. The infectious disease expert insists on wearing masks, restricting visitations for all patients, and offering a virtual appointment when possible. Dr Eckardt also suggests allowing everyone to access a test (with symptoms or without) since asymptomatic positive COVID people can be at high risk of spreading the disease without even knowing it.
Fighting against coronavirus without a vaccine or a specific treatment has been the biggest challenge for healthcare workers and the South Florida facility was selected to participate in the trial of the drug Remdesivir (broad-spectrum antiviral). There is limited information known about the safety and effectiveness of using remdesivir to treat people in the hospital with COVID-19. Remdesivir was shown in a clinical trial to shorten the time to recovery in some people.
“We won’t stop fighting against this pandemic, and we are working together every day with the research department in order to find better ways to assist and treat our COVID-19 patients,” said Dr. Eckardt.
About Memorial Global Health:
Memorial Global Health provides personalized coordination of specialized and emergency medical services for adult and pediatric international patients. The Memorial Healthcare System offers premier clinical expertise throughout their six hospitals including Joe DiMaggio Children’s Hospital, exclusively dedicated to the care of children. For more than 60 years, the physicians, nurses, specialists, and healthcare professionals at Memorial have placed patients and their families at the heart of everything they do. The skilled team at Memorial offers patient-and-family-centred care by partnering with patients and their families.
About Memorial Healthcare System:
Memorial Healthcare System is one of the largest public healthcare systems in the United States and has served South Florida since 1953. The South Florida community has benefited from compassionate healthcare delivered according to the service vision of Deeper Caring, Smarter Healthcare. Memorial has six hospitals and more than 150 employed physicians, who compose of the Memorial Physician Group; a nursing home; home health services; research, and primary and urgent care centers; and the South Broward Community Health Services. In 2013, the Memorial Health Network led the way in putting the clinically-integrated healthcare delivery model into action. By expanding on this new framework, Memorial will continue to improve the quality, efficiency, and cost-effectiveness of the services they proudly provide.