I found the the MICU (Medical, or sick people, not just surgical recoveries) was where most ventilator deaths were occurring. My friends spoke as if they were all dying once ventilated. To me this indicated the Medical History (or Hx) was a genuine factor. We also had a Cardiac ICU. The PICU and NICU (Pediatric and Neonatal) tended to be staffed by such who rarely worked elsewhere. Such persons were not allowed anywhere near Covid Patients or Health Care Workers working with those poor people.
Most of us were happy with these arrangements. Of course we just about all had almost regular shifts in the ER/Trauma Rooms. That was where the action was. .
It struck me as odd that the MICU Patients died in seemingly higher numbers than the other Units. It reminded me of the N1H1 Patients of ten years or so earlier, who were incredibly susceptible to the Covid thing. If a person had an immune compromised system, they were hit hard by the N1H1. Many died, but few read about it. For sure though, there was a lot of guessing going on with this Covid 19.
The Physicians were tweaking the ventilators constantly. Often with absurdly minor adjustments. Sometimes they ordered very stupid things. This brought head to head confrontations frequently between Department Managers. I could provide a few examples, but most would not likely appreciate it. The difference between a pressure control level is unique to each person, but some of these persons were ordering dangerously high pressures, and we were ordered to not comply.
The fact of the matter is that We in my Department were the ‘Experts’ on ventilator management’ and I believe that was resented a bit. The Doctors may have all been brilliant in a number of ways. They knew pharmacology, hematology, pulmonary, hepatic functions, all sorts of things, but as a general rule for them it was ‘hands off the ventilators.’ This policy was often violated.
“It struck me as odd that the MICU Patients died in seemingly higher numbers than the other Units. It reminded me of the N1H1 Patients of ten years or so earlier, who were incredibly susceptible to the Covid thing. If a person had an immune compromised system, they were hit hard by the N1H1. Many died, but few read about it. For sure though, there was a lot of guessing going on with this Covid 19.”
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My mother was one of those people who died of the flu that year. I had begged her to take probiotics. I had bought probiotics and other things for my father over the years. Neither one of them moved much. They were both obese. I try to be sure to keep moving when I have a bad cold so pneumonia doesn’t set in.
I’m considered the nut in my family. But I’m also the thin one who got “carded” for years after turning 21 and still does once in a while. And they marvel at all the stuff I’ve been able to do with working on the house and how much energy I have that they never thought I’d have and how I recovered from what they were sure was long Covid. You’d think it would occur to them that maybe all the “junk” I take has something to do with it.
They just sneer at me when I drink my yucky pine needle tea and such and think I am some sort of masochist torturing myself with the taste. My complaint about such teas is usually that they don’t have enough of a taste at all. My sense of taste has fully recovered from Covid.