MANY OF THEM NEEDING CRITICAL
CARE ATTENTION.
WHAT DOES IT FEEL LIKE TO BE IN
THE MIDDLE OF THAT?
JOINING US NOW IS DR. CEDRIC.
I KNOW HOW VALUABLE YOUR TIME IS
RIGHT NOW.
I APPRECIATE YOU TAKING A FEW
MINUTES TO BE HERE WITH US
TONIGHT.
THANK YOU.
>> THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR HAVING
ME ON.
>> I JUST SAID A LOT OF WORDS
ABOUT HOUSTON AND HOW THINGS
ARE.
LET ME JUST ASK IF THAT COMPORTS
WITH YOUR UNDERSTANDING OR IF
YOU FEEL LIKE FROM YOUR
PERSPECTIVE WE’RE TALKING ABOUT
ANY OF THIS IN THE WRONG WAY OR
MISSING ANY OF THE IMPORTANT
POINTS?
>> I THINK YOU’RE RIGHT ON ABOUT
IT.
I WAS WORKING A FEW DAYS AGO,
AND IT WAS PRETTY OBVIOUS TO ME
THAT THERE WERE NO HOSPITAL BEDS
FOR ANY PATIENTS THAT HAD COVID
THROUGHOUT THE ENTIRE HOUSTON
AREA, AND THAT’S, YOU KNOW,
RANGING AS FAR SOUTH AS
GALVESTON AND UPWARDS INTO THE
WOODLANDS.
NOBODY HAD ANY CAPACITY TO TAKE
CARE OF A PATIENT WITH
CORONAVIRUS.
IT IS PRETTY A SHAME TO SAY
THAT’S THE STATE OF OUR CITY.
IT IS PRETTY WORRISOME.
I WISH THEY WOULD ABOUTTY VISIT
NRG FOR OVERCROWDED EMERGENCY
DEPARTMENTS.
>> HOW DOES THAT MANIFEST YOUR
YOU AS A DOCTOR, YOU AND YOUR
COLLEAGUES, WHEN YOU HAVE GOT A
PATIENT WITH COVID THAT NEEDS
CARE THAT YOU DON’T HAVE ROOM
FOR AND YOU START LOOKING FOR
SOMEPLACE TO TRANSFER THEM TO?
CAN YOU JUST TELL US WHAT THAT’S
LIKE AND SORT OF WHAT PLAN B IS
WHEN YOU REALIZE THAT YOU CAN’T
ACTUALLY FIND A PLACE TO SEND
THEM?
>> I MEAN, PLAN B, AS THEY SAY
IN THE EMERGENCY DEPARTMENT
ULTIMATELY, WHAT WE TEND TO DO
IF THERE IS A PATIENT THAT NEEDS
ANY KIND OF CARE, WHETHER IT’S
COVID CARE OR HIGHER LEVEL CARE
AND THEY DON’T HAVE SPACE FOR
THAT IN THEIR HOSPITAL, THEY
HAVE TO SEEK A TRANSFER AND IT
REQUIRES ANOTHER HOSPITAL HAVE
THE CAPACITY TO BE ABLE TO
ACCEPT THAT PATIENT.
OTHERWISE, YOU CAN’T TRANSFER
THEM.
IF OUR CASE, IF WE’RE STUCK IN
THAT SITUATION, WE WOULD HAVE TO
CONTINUE TO MANAGE THOSE
PATIENTS IN OUR EMERGENCY
DEPARTMENT ON OUR OWN.
THAT’S NOT SOMETHING WE AS
EMERGENCY PHYSICIANS NECESSARILY
WANT TO DO BECAUSE WE’RE USED TO
FINDING AND DIAGNOSING THE
PROBLEM AND THEN GETTING THE
PERSON TO WHERE THEY NEED TO BE.
BUT UNFORTUNATELY WE’RE PUT IN A
SITUATION RIGHT NOW WHERE WE’RE
HAVING TO FUNCTION AS EITHER A
HOSPITALIST OR AS AN INTERNIST
OR AN INTENSIVIST IF THERE IS NO
SPACE UPSTAIRS IN THE HOSPITALS
FOR US TO CARE FOR OUR PATIENTS.
THIS IS WHAT WE SAW IN NEW YORK.
>> AND DOES THAT HAVE AN
IMPACT -- DOES THAT HAVE AN
IMPACT ON PATIENTS WHO HAVE
OTHER EMERGENCY ROOM
PRESENTATIONS?
I MEAN, PEOPLE WHO DON’T HAVE
COVID OR MIGHT BE INFECTED BUT
THAT’S NOT WHAT THEY’RE COMING
IN FOR.
IS THAT HAVING AN EFFECT?
SHOULD PEOPLE EXPECT THAT THAT
WOULD HAVE AN EFFECT IN TERMS OF
THE NORMAL FUNCTION OF THE ER
AND HOW PEOPLE GET CARE FOR ALL
KINDS OF THINGS?
>> IT CERTAINLY CAN BECAUSE WHAT
HAPPENS IS IT CAN SLOW DOWN THE
FLOW THROUGH THE EMERGENCY
DEPARTMENT AND BACK UP WAITING
ROOMS AND THEREFORE IF YOU ARE
WALKING IN OR YOUR LOVED ONE IS
WALKING IN WITH CHEST PAIN AND
THEY NEED TO SEE A DOCTOR TO
MAKE SURE THEY’RE NOT HAVING A
HEART ATTACK, YOU KNOW, EVERY
STEP ALONG THE WAY, IF YOU SLOW
DOWN THE OUTPUT FROM THE
EMERGENCY DEPARTMENT, THEN IT’S
GOING TO BE SLOW ON THE INPUT
SIDE, AND THAT MIGHT LEAD TO
DELAYS IN CARE, WHICH CAN
ULTIMATELY CAUSE DEVASTATING
HARM TO PATIENTS THAT NEED IT,
WHETHER OR NOT THEY HAVE
CORONAVIRUS OR IF THEY HAVE
SOMETHING LIKE A HEART ATTACK OR
A STROKE OR TRAUMA.
>> YOU MENTIONED NEW YORK JUST A
MOMENT AGO.
I FOUND MYSELF THINKING ACTUALLY
JUST OVER THE COURSE OF THIS
HOUR TALKING TO THE FORMER
DIRECTOR OF THE STATE HEALTH
DEPARTMENT, TALKING TO YOU RIGHT
NOW LOOKING AT THESE NUMBERS.
AND I FOUND MYSELF THINKING
ABOUT GOVERNOR ANDREW CUOMO IN
NEW YORK WHEN NEW YORK WAS IN
THE WORST OF IT.
HE’S JUST IN THE LAST FEW DAYS
STOPPED DOING HIS DAILY PRESS
BRIEFINGS.
BUT I REMEMBER HIM SAYING IN THE
WORST OF IT THAT NEW YORK WOULD
RECIPROCATE.
THAT HE WANTED HEALTH STATES TO
SEND HEALTH WORKERS TO NEW YORK.
HE SAID, WHEN THIS HAPPENS TO
YOU, WHEN THIS GOES SO BADLY IN
YOUR STATE IN THE FUTURE, AND IT
WILL, WE WILL SEND PEOPLE TO
YOU.
ARE WE AT A STATE WHERE PLACES
LIKE HOUSTON, ARIZONA, OTHER
PLACES THAT HARD HIT SHOULD
START TO THINK ABOUT TAPPING A
MEDICAL RESERVE CORE FROM
WORKERS AROUND THE COUNTRY,
TRYING TO TAP NATIONAL RESOURCES
TO PROTECT YOUR HOSPITALS?
IT IS CONCERNING TO HEAR YOU SAY
THAT ALREADY FOR THE LAST FEW
DAYS YOU GOT NOWHERE TO SEND
COVID PATIENTS.
>> I MEAN, THE WONDERFUL THING
ABOUT HOUSTON IS THERE IS LIKE A
DOCTOR ALMOST EVERYWHERE AROUND
AND A NURSE EVERYWHERE AROUND
THIS CITY BECAUSE WE ARE THE
HOME OF THE TEXAS MEDICAL
CENTER, WHICH IS THE LARGEST
MEDICAL CENTER IN THE WORLD.
SO FOR RIGHT NOW I DON’T THINK
THE HUMAN RESOURCE IS A PROBLEM.
I THINK RIGHT NOW IT IS MOSTLY
THE PHYSICAL RESOURCES THAT
WE’RE STRUGGLING WITH AND THAT
WE NEED A LITTLE HELP WITH.
>> EMERGENCY MEDICINE PHYSICIAN
IN HOUSTON, TEXAS.
AGAIN, YOUR TIME RIGHT NOW IS
INCREDIBLY VALUABLE.
THANK YOU.
KEEP US APPRISED GOING FORWARD.
I’M HOPING THERE IS GOING TO BE
CHANGE IN TERMS OF RESOURCES
AVAILABLE TO YOU AND YOUR
COLLEAGUES OVER THE NEXT FEW
DAYS, BUT WE’D LOVE TO HAVE YOU