I don’t like wearing a mask. I doubt that anyone does.
Having stayed home because of the Safer at Home and Stay at Home orders in March and April, I have had little reason to. But breaking my foot on May 9 forced me into healthcare facilities, giving rise to the need for wearing a mask. Most healthcare establishments will not allow entry without a mask on, and hopefully we now have a deeper appreciation for healthcare workers who have to wear them for 8-plus hours while providing care. As much as I dislike wearing a mask, and yes, I know it’s uncomfortable and yes, I know it is harder to breathe, this account really got my attention.
Two hairstylists had the Coronavirus and did not know it, so they continued to serve customers. Between the two of them, they spent at least 15 minutes with 139 customers while being carriers for COVID-19. However, both the professionals and the clients had masks on and were wearing them correctly, and not one customer became infected.
Y’all, that’s a very powerful reality. Those hairstylists followed CDC guidelines in their practice and who knows how much suffering was averted by keeping their customers safe from this truly miserable disease. Just google any healthcare professional sharing their experience about what they have to put patients through in attempting to survive this disease and you’ll see that for those requiring hospitalization, it’s definitely a very horrible experience. While it is true that some people are fortunate in having mild symptoms, others are not. It’s an awfully big gamble to take with your own health or the health of a loved one.
Another newsworthy account is the rising infection rates in long-term care facilities. As of July 24, 156 facilities across the state reported Coronavirus cases within their building, many in the Knoxville Metro area included. What surprised me was that most had more staff members who were positive than residents. In fact, in many cases, no residents were infected or had died from COVID-19, but they had staff positive for it.
I believe this can be attributed to following the CDC guidelines in wearing masks and other protective equipment to protect the residents from the employees, quarantining any new admits and social distancing.
I can tell you from personal experience that not being able to come to see a loved one when they are hurt or sick is hard. Trying to visit with a confused loved one through a window, tying up a nurse who has a million things to do but is taking time to help your confused and weak loved one hold the phone and communicate with you is overwhelming.
I am so proud to share that so far (knock on wood) Willow Ridge has kept the virus out of their building. I spoke to the administrator, Kevin Brown, and he said that everyone who comes in the building is screened at the door and they test weekly. So far they have had three false positives, with subsequent negatives and zero signs or symptoms.
We are fortunate to have a facility operating so diligently in the care of our elders and the staff of our community. They also work hard to provide alternative communication between the residents and their families, including assistance as needed. The employees wear masks to protect their residents and goggles to protect themselves and really follow those social distancing guidelines.
I won’t bother putting in the current statistics for Union County because, by the time you read this, those numbers will be old news. For example, today we’re at 73 cases in Union County, my guess is by the time you read this we will have topped 100. It is undeniable that the case counts are rising fast. We seemed to have been in a protected pocket for the first wave of this virus but we’ve let our guard down in our desperation to return to the old normal, and the numbers show it.
Wearing a mask is quite simply a strong statement that “other lives matter.” In addition to wearing a mask, there are multiple things you can do to protect yourself and others. Stay at least six feet apart, clean and disinfect frequently touched surfaces, wash your hands, avoid close contact with those outside of your home, go contactless as much as possible and forego things and events that are not truly a need.
I will close with one of my favorite quotes: “Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves,” Philippians 2:3 - NIV