Masks now in effect at senior center, library

McCOOK, Neb. —City Manager Nate Schneider said that city staff are wearing masks in an effort to prevent staff from being exposed to COVID-19 and having to quarantine.

“It’s not a political statement, we just want to continue to operate,” he told the McCook City Council Monday night at the regular meeting.

Keeping the senior center open is imperative so it can continue to provide food for area seniors, so those who physically use the facility are asked to wear masks, Schneider said, as well as those using the city library.

The number of positive COVID-19 cases have almost doubled in frequency the past week, said Troy Bruntz, president of Community Hospital.

Bruntz spoke in favor of the proclamation the council approved, that urged the community to follow health guidelines related to COVID-19. The proclamation, drafted by the McCook Chamber of Commerce, comes in response to the recent spike in positive COVID-19 cases in the community and to an Oct. 15 incident command meeting, where community members and officials discussed the surge in coronavirus cases.

A total of 95 positive cases were identified the past two weeks, with 58 identified last week and five of the seven beds at Community Hospital reserved for inpatient COVID-19 patients in use, Bruntz told the council.

“There’s a problem when we have few beds,” he said, as it’s getting more difficult to find hospitals able to accept COVID-19 patients as they are filling up as well.

Under new directed health measures issued by Gov. Pete Ricketts, in order to continue elective procedures, hospitals must maintain at least 10% of their staffed general and ICU beds as reserve capacity to treat COVID-19 patients, must continue to accept and treat COVID-19 patients and must not transfer COVID-19 patients to create capacity for elective procedures.

“They’re not comfortable and nobody wants to wear them,” Bruntz said, pointing to his mask, but wearing a mask, social distancing and frequently washing your hands can keep the virus from spreading. Wearing one can prevent a huge transfer of the virus in crowds, he said, noting recent large gatherings at the fairgrounds.

Bruntz said he’s not one to argue about the science behind the mask, because “You don’t wear a mask to protect yourself, you wear one to protect others,” he said. “I’d like the public to understand that the (CDC) guidelines are important.”

People having to quarantine because they were exposed to the virus can become a problem, he said, as that affects staffing, not just at the hospital but for local businesses as well. “Nobody wants businesses to shut down, but if you don’t have staff, restaurants and hospitals can’t operate. That’s a reality….as a small community, we just don’t have the people.”

Although the State of Nebraska is allocating up to $40 million of CARES Act funding to support hospital capacity, that’s not a cure-all for lack of staffing, Bruntz said. Other states are trying to recruit nurses as well, he said, and “It’s not like there’s a fleet of nursing waiting out there.”

Mayor Mike Gonzales asked how the new directed health measures released by Gov. Ricketts affect the hospital and Bruntz said the new measures require the hospital have 10% capacity available for COVID patients if elective surgeries are to continue, compared to 30% during Phase I and II earlier in the year.

Several businesses signed a letter to the McCook City Council in support of the proclamation, including American Agricultural Laboratory, Community Hospital, McCook Clinic, P.C., McCook Hearing Aid Center, Mid-Plains Community College, MNB Bank, Pinnacle Bank, Pizza Hut, Sehnert’s Bakery and Bieroc Cafe, Stagemeyer CPA Group, P.C., The Sports Shoppe and the YMCA.