April 7: DAILY COVID-19 UPDATE

NEW TODAY: Here’s the latest information about Michigan Medicine’s management of the COVID-19 pandemic:

• DAILY STATS
• HAIL TO THE FRONTLINES
• PACU ACTIVATION
• THANK YOU PARADE
• Q&A FROM TOWN HALL: HR
• VISITOR RESTRICTIONS
• CANCER CENTER STAFF ENTRANCE CHANGES
• PARKING AND TRANSPORTATION UPDATE

DAILY STATS

Today’s census for COVID-19 inpatients and those patients under investigation (PUI) are noted below: 

Discharges: 138 total COVID-19 discharges to date, 16 in the last 24 hours.

HAIL TO THE FRONT LINES

The entire organization is inspired, grateful and so very thankful for all of the efforts throughout the Michigan Medicine community in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. As we weather this storm together, so many of our employees are stepping up and setting new standards in teamwork, problem solving and innovation. Share your experiences during this unprecedented time by sending a story, photo, video or audio file to headlines@med.umich.edu. 

You can also recognize the teams at Michigan Medicine by posting your message of gratitude and encouragement on social media using the tag #HailToTheFrontline. If you aren’t a social media user, you can upload your message directly at www.UofMHealth.org/frontline by clicking on the “Add your message of encouragement” button.

To see some of the messages posted already, visit www.UofMHealth.org/frontline

PACU ACTIVATION

The PACU was activated today for critical care COVID-19 patients, which will initially allow for eight ICU patients to be cared for in that unit. This was a huge effort by multiple teams to convert the PACU to create a safe environment for both our patients and our staff. Further expansion of the PACU for additional patients will be determined by patient need.

THANK YOU PARADE

On Wednesday, April 8, a public safety vehicle parade will take place outside of Michigan Medicine to show support and gratitude for the local medical community amid the COVID-19 pandemic. The parade will feature vehicles from the University of Michigan Division of Public Safety and Security, City of Ann Arbor fire and police departments along with other public safety agencies throughout Washtenaw County.

About 8 p.m., public safety personnel will assemble and begin a vehicle procession starting at the University of Michigan Hospital and proceeding to St. Joseph Mercy Hospital. Watch for the parade along East Medical Center Drive.

Public safety vehicles will use lights only, no sirens. All personnel will remain in vehicles, per the “Stay Home, Stay Safe” executive order restricting group gatherings.

We look forward to our community partners’ show of support and are grateful for the true commitment our staff and colleagues have displayed during this time.

Q&A TOWN HALL: HR

1. Other health care systems are furloughing employees. Do you anticipate Michigan Medicine will need to do this or make layoffs or salary cuts?

At this time, the need to maintain critical Michigan Medicine services calls for the effective utilization, support and redeployment of all of our staff.  Several staffing groups are working to redeploy faculty and staff across the institution to support the projected growth in COVID-19 patients. Staffing the incremental ICU and general care beds will require an “all hands on deck” mandatory deployment approach.  This is needed to take care of our patients.  During the next few weeks we will monitor our staffing needs to make the best decisions for our patients, staff and the organization.

• Will employees face disciplinary action if they refuse deployment to COVID19 areas

As of April 1, 2020, redeployment is considered mandatory for all employees and refusal to work will follow the standard disciplinary process. Bargained for employees please refer to your collective bargaining agreement for additional information. 

• How will clerical staff be deployed?

Redeployment will occur based on need and skill set. You may be called upon to do work unfamiliar to you, and if this occurs, we are prepared to provide “just in time training” for employees to perform the need tasks safely and with confidence.

• Will U-M life insurance pay out for death due to COVID19? Some policies have a pandemic clause.

Yes, the University of Michigan life insurance plans will cover claims resulting from the pandemic.

Questions from Friday’s and previous Town Halls are being updated on an ongoing basis. Please refer to this COVID-19 page for more general and HR FAQs.

FLU VACCINES

Because of the marked decrease in influenza activity in the region, the influenza vaccine assessment has now been removed from MiChart for all inpatient areas except Child Psych, 9C, and OB.  Child Psych, 9C, and OB still will have the vaccine assessment present and are to select the option “April-August: Not offered” for the influenza vaccine.

VISITOR RESTRICTIONS

The visitor policy remains in effect as written until further notice. We have attached an updated grid that details exceptions to this policy.

CHANGES TO CANCER CENTER STAFF ENTRANCE

Effective immediately, staff that currently access the Rogel Cancer Center through the main entrance Monday through Friday between 6 a.m. and 6 p.m. will now be screened and enter at the staff entrance to the east of the main entrance. From Monday through Friday between 6 p.m. and 6 a.m. and on weekends, staff will still enter through the Cancer Center main entrance.  This does not impact the other limited access points on the medical campus, which still remain available for staff to enter 24/7. 

PARKING AND TRANSPORTATION UPDATE

To continue to accommodate the service needs of essential employees and promote social distancing and public health recommendations, additional modifications to transit will go into effect on Thursday, April 9.

Key details of the service plan are included here. 

• Service between the East Ann Arbor (EC1) lot and medical campus will be suspended at 5 a.m., on Thursday, April 9. Please do not park in this lot after 3 p.m. Wednesday.
• Blue Car Late Night Shuttles will begin modified service replacing late night/early morning bus trips to commuter parking. 
• Passengers are required to board and enter buses from the rear doors.
• Magic Bus live tracking will not display the current service changes. Refer to Route Timetables. 

For additional updates on weekday and weekend transit routes and commuter parking updates, click here. For general updates on parking and transportation changes related to COVID-19, click here.

Still have questions?

We are also posting all daily bulletins and policies on Michigan Medicine Headlines at https://mmheadlines.org/covid-19-updates/.  Please bookmark that site and refer to it throughout the day for the most up-to-date information. An FAQ for staff is also posted and updated frequently.

If you still can’t find what you’re looking for on these web pages, please email coronavirus-info@med.umich.edu and your question will be answered as quickly as possible.  Do not use this email for sharing patient health information.

Jeffrey Desmond, M.D.
Chief Medical Officer