And another day of hospitals in serious trouble, a breakdown of services, hiring foreign nurses, hospitals prioritizing care, Covid increasing risk of diabetes in children, asymptomatic teachers working, changes to menstrual cycles, and UFOs comes to a close:
“Not wanting to die at work is not ‘selfish.’” — Eric Stanley
“I often hear people say, ‘I'm a good person and I support Donald Trump.’ I consider that an oxymoron. I don't believe any good people voted for him a second time or still support him. I believe that is fundamentally antithetical to anything good.”— John Pavlovitz
“It’s tiring enough getting people to admit that ‘real’ Christians can be bad people. But the hard truth we really need to hear is this: for some versions of Christianity, being a GOOD Christian *means* being a BAD person (anti-pluralist, anti-democratic).” — Chrissy Stroop
Deaths
US: 859,046 (+700)
World: 5,502,666 (+5588)
Cases
US: 60,954,028 (+489,602)
World: 306,037,922 (+2,215,377)
Hospitals Are in Serious Trouble. When a health-care system crumbles, this is what it looks like…This is not conjecture; it is happening now, across the United States. “It’s not a dramatic Armageddon; it happens inch by inch.”…Omicron’s main threat is its extreme contagiousness. It is infecting so many people that even if a smaller proportion need hospital care, the absolute numbers are still enough to saturate the system. It might be less of a threat to individual people, but it’s disastrous for the health-care system that those individuals will ultimately need…“Before, the sickest ICU patient would get two nurses, and now there’s four patients for every nurse,” Megan Brunson, an ICU nurse in Texas, told me. “It makes it impossible to do everything you need to do.” Omicron has turned this bad situation into a dire one. Its ability to infect even vaccinated people means that “the numbers of staff who are sick are astronomical compared to previous surges.”…Every part of the health-care system has been affected, diminishing the quality of care for all patients…Health-care workers now experience indifference at best or antagonism at worst. And more than ever, they are struggling with the jarring disconnect between their jobs and their communities. At work, they see the inescapable reality of the pandemic. Everywhere else—on TV and social media, during commutes and grocery runs—they see people living the fantasy that it is over. The rest of the country seems hell-bent on returning to normal, but their choices mean that health-care workers cannot…To be clear, these problems are not affecting just COVID patients, but all patients…From outside the system, it can be hard to see these problems. “I don’t think people will realize what’s happening until we fall off that cliff—until you call 911 and no one comes, or you need that emergency surgery and we can’t do it.”…There’s a plausible future in which most of the U.S. enjoys a carefree spring, oblivious to the frayed state of the system they rely on to protect their health, and only realizing what has happened when they knock on its door and get no answer. This is the cost of two years spent prematurely pushing for a return to normal—the lack of a normal to return to.
Omicron explosion spurs nationwide breakdown of services. Ambulances in Kansas speed toward hospitals then suddenly change direction because hospitals are full. Employee shortages in New York City cause delays in trash and subway services and diminish the ranks of firefighters and emergency workers. Airport officials shut down security checkpoints at the biggest terminal in Phoenix and schools across the nation struggle to find teachers for their classrooms. The current explosion of omicron-fueled coronavirus infections in the U.S. is causing a breakdown in basic functions and services — the latest illustration of how COVID-19 keeps upending life more than two years into the pandemic.
Short-staffed and COVID-battered, U.S. hospitals are hiring more foreign nurses. Scores of U.S. hospitals are looking for nurses abroad to ease shortages caused by COVID. The demand is so great that it's created a backlog of 5,000 international nurses awaiting approval to enter the U.S.
Oregon issues guidelines for how hospitals should prioritize care amid omicron surge. The interim triage tool says if a hospital has insufficient resources to care for all patients, the patients will be scored with “objective medical evidence.” “Care decisions should be based on the likelihood of survival to hospital discharge,” the health department said. The tool does not allow hospitals to score a patient “based on stereotypes, assumptions about any individual’s quality of life, or judgement about an individual’s ‘worth’ based on the presence or absence of disabilities.”
CDC study shows COVID-19 infections in children may increase their risk of diabetes. Children who have had COVID-19 seem to be at increased risk of developing Type 1 or Type 2 diabetes, according to a study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released Friday.
Georgia public school teachers who test positive for coronavirus may return to school if they are asymptomatic and masked.
Thousands protest in France against proposed new vaccine pass. A new draft law would in effect ban unvaccinated people from public life.
Please Do Not Just Go Get Omicron. For vaccinated and otherwise healthy people, it may seem tempting to live a normal life and get Omicron over with. Here are some reasons why you shouldn't. Omicron can still knock you out for days…You could still get others sick…It’s unclear how long it will boost your immunity…Hospitals are struggling…Societal effects are endless…It’s too soon to tell if Omicron will end the pandemic…So, what should I do for now? All three experts who spoke to VICE News encouraged people to continue following public health advice. Limit close contacts, avoid crowded indoor gatherings, wear good quality masks like KN95s or N95s, practice social distancing, and get vaccinated.
New study suggests COVID-19 vaccination may cause temporary, slight change to menstrual cycle. COVID-19 vaccination may cause a temporary change to a person's menstrual cycle, but it appears to be a “small change.”
Novak Djokovic was granted a medical exemption to compete in the Australian Open as he had recently recovered from Covid-19, court documents published on Saturday by Australia's Federal Circuit show.
“In truth, Djokovic is another whiny sports superstar with screwy ideas and an exaggerated sense of entitlement.” — Max Boot
Washington digs out after record-breaking weather leads to 38 avalanches. Washington is finally getting a break Saturday from record-breaking rain and snow, with rivers expected to ebb and flood waters recede, as the state works to deal with the aftermath of weeks of storms.
Disclosure or deception? New UFO Pentagon office divides believers. The U.S. government is finally getting back into the UFO business. And depending on which UFO believer you ask, it's either a historic step forward to getting to the bottom of conspiracies or a ploy to regain control of the narrative — and possibly even prepare for interplanetary war.
Life’s short. Live, love, create, and help others.
Until next time, my friends. Stay safe and stay sane. Good night.
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