Page 3 - National Nurses Week 2020

ADVERTISING SUPPLEMENT TO THE ARKANSAS DEMOCRAT-GAZETTE • SUNDAY, MAY 10, 2020
CELEBRATING NATIONAL NURSES WEEK 3M
of the coronavirus was to reduce some services and redeploy staff to other areas. “Some clinic nurses are serving as our personal-protective-equipment experts and monitors, and others are screeners for all employees and visitors entering the building. Similar measures have been taken by the Arkansas State Hospital in Little Rock. As Arkansas’ only state-run psychiatric hospital, the staff was faced with the challenge of having COVID- 19-positive patients and containing the spread of the virus only to that one area. Jerri Stanton, who is a registered nurse, holds a Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree and is nursing administrator at the hospital, said that as a result of the polices in place and strict adherence to those policies by staff, they were able to contain the virus to the one unit and have had no further positive COVID-19 cases
in patients in other units.
“We have an area in which new
admissions are being quarantined until we have negative test results, so our staffing needs have increased,” she said. “Our staff members have really stepped up and volunteered to provide the coverage that we have so desperately needed in order to provide the best care possible for our patients.”
Gary Gipson, director and nursing- home administrator for the Arkansas Health Center in Benton, which is operated by the Arkansas Department of Human Services, said protecting staff members has been a priority because they can’t provide the best care possible if they aren’t healthy themselves.
“They are committed to provide services for some of the most vulnerable people in our state, and our staff is the greatest asset we have in our mission to serve,” he said.
Gipson said visitation to facilities and the use of volunteers were restricted in March. Following that, DHS facilities screen every person who arrives on a daily basis for fever and ask serious questions to reduce the chance of introducing the virus to residents. All staff and most residents wear face masks and use appropriate personal protective equipment, and all patients admitted to the facilities are required to have a negative COVID-19 test and be isolated for a period of time in further efforts to prevent the spread of the disease.
“All the facilities have experienced staffing shortages due to employees being potentially exposed to the virus outside of their work setting, which results in heavier loads for staff reporting to work,”
he said. “Additionally, there is always the possibility of bringing the virus in from outside of work. This requires our staff to be hypervigilant at all times to limit the risk of exposing very vulnerable populations.”
Arkansas Children’s, which has locations in Little Rock, Springdale and Jonesboro, has been vigilant to protect the health and safety of its staff and patients, said Marcy Doderer, president and CEO. Team members are screened for temperature and risk factors every day. Everyone over the age of 2 who enters the facilities must wear a mask, and steps have been taken to maintain proper social distancing, she said.
Doderer said the hospital has tested many children and diagnosed some who have been treated at home under the hospital’s direction. No patients with a positive COVID-19 test have been admitted to either Arkansas Children’s Hospital in Little Rock or Arkansas Children’s Northwest in Springdale, she said.
“At Arkansas Children’s, safety is our top priority,” she said. “While COVID-19’s immediate impact on child health appears to be low nationwide, the long-term consequences of delayed care, isolation and various socioeconomic factors have the potential to be significant. We are focused on balancing state and federal public-health information with what we know to be true about the timely health needs of the children we serve and, above all else, prioritizing the safety of our patients and staff.”
Doderer said that emergency training and infectious-disease training were already a part of daily life for the staff of Arkansas Children’s before the outbreak. They prepare year-round through exercises, professional development and by fostering a community that thrives on continual learning. She said that while it is impossible to be fully prepared for an unknown such as a global pandemic, the team’s training, agility and thirst to learn have helped Arkansas Children’s leadership make the best choices to protect children.
“Our team remains upbeat and positive,” she said. “They are committed to providing safe, compassionate care to every child who enters our doors. More than ever, we are grateful for the outpouring of community support, from donations of food for our team and masks for our patients, to the volunteers who showed up to decorate our sidewalks with encouraging messages or sent in photos or videos of support.”
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