MICHIGAN — A group of chief medical officers and chief clinical officers of health care systems and hospitals across Michigan issued a joint statement this week on COVID-19 policies.
As the physician leaders of hospitals and healthcare systems throughout the state of Michigan, representing 110 of Michigan’s 137 hospitals, we have an important safety message regarding COVID-19.
We want to make it clear that regardless of state law, executive orders, or local public health directives, hospitals and healthcare systems across the state are standing as a united front in our policies and interventions in order to fight the spread of COVID-19. It is imperative that every Michigan resident join us in taking the necessary steps to prevent the spread of this deadly disease.
Our hospitals and healthcare facilities will continue requiring staff, patients, and visitors to follow public safety protocols, including mask-wearing, screenings upon entry to our facilities, and limitation of visitors. We ask that everyone do the public version of these precautions: wear a mask, stay at least 6 feet apart, avoid crowds, and wash your hands frequently. We do this to keep our patients, visitors and healthcare workers safe.
In recent weeks, we have seen COVID-19 cases trending upwards in all regions of the state, and hospitalizations have surged by more than 80 percent. This concerning jump puts our entire healthcare system at risk of another capacity crisis. If the trend continues, doctors and nurses, therapists and custodians, food services and support staff, who have barely begun to recover from the terrible stress of the initial COVID-19 surge will suffer additional stress and risk their own infection, illness, and mortality. If Michigan doesn’t change its approach to this disease, we could have crowded hospital emergency departments and approach exceeding the capacity of our hospitals as we did in Southeast Michigan this past spring.
The decision to continue these safety measures is driven by data and guidance from healthcare experts, not politics. Public health draws on data to chart the route from where we are now, to where we need to go. It keeps hospitals and healthcare facilities safe places for patients to receive both routine and emergency care as needed. These measures also will prevent another catastrophic surge in hospital admissions and COVID-19 deaths, but we need your help and compliance.
Help keep COVID-19 under control by doing what you can to prevent more illness and hospitalization. Support our dedicated and courageous healthcare staff as they continue the fight against COVID-19 for those patients who have the misfortune of becoming ill during the pandemic.
Together we can get to where we want to be: keeping this dangerous virus under control.
Gary L. Roth, DO, MBA, FACOS, FCCM
Chief Medical Officer
Michigan Health & Hospital Association
Donald D. Bignotti, MD
Chief Clinical Officer
Ascension Michigan
Todd V Ingram, MD
Chief Medical Officer
Baraga County Memorial Hospital
David P. Wood, MD
Executive Vice President and Chief Medical Officer
Beaumont Health
Scott D. Larson, MD
Senior Vice President of Medical Affairs, Chief Medical Officer
Bronson Healthcare
Rudolph P. Valentini, MD
Group Chief Medical Officer: Detroit Medical Center
Chief Medical Officer: Children's Hospital of Michigan
Paula M Rechner, MD
Chief Medical Officer
Chippewa County War Memorial Hospital
Michael W Sullivan, MD, MBA
Vice President Performance Improvement, Chief Medical Officer
Covenant Healthcare
Scott A. Gruber, MD, PhD, MBA, FACS, FCP, FACHE, CPE
Chief of Staff
Detroit VA Healthcare System
Adnan R Munkarah, MD
Executive Vice President, Chief Clinical Officer
Henry Ford Health System
Melanie Kramer-Harrington, MD
Chief of Medical Staff
Hills & Dales General Hospital
F. Michael Jaggi, DO
Chief Medical Officer
Hurley Medical Center
Loretta Leja, MD
Chief Medical Officer
Mackinac Straits Health System
James Sams, MD
Chief Medical Officer
McKenzie Health System
Michael McKenna, MD
Executive Vice President/Chief Medical Officer
McLaren Health Care
Joseph Bustamante, DO, FACEP
Chief Medical Officer
Memorial Healthcare
Rosalie Tocco-Bradley, MD, PhD, MHSA
Trinity Health Michigan Chief Clinical Officer
Mercy Health & Saint Joseph Mercy Health System
Ronald G. Grifka, MD, FAAP, FACC, FSCAI
Chief Medical Officer
Metro Health - University of Michigan Health System
Lydia A. Watson MD, CPE
Senior Vice President, Chief Medical Officer
MidMichigan Health
Christine Nefcy, MD, FAAP
Chief Medical Officer
Munson Healthcare
Mark Eastburg, PhD
Chief Executive Officer
Pine Rest Christian Mental Health Services
Kent E. Bishop MD, FACOG, CPE
Chief Medical Officer
ProMedica Providers and Acute Care
Mark Cardamone-Rayner, MD
Chief Medical Officer
Schoolcraft Memorial Hospital
Karen Kent VanGorder, MD
Chief Medical and Quality Officer, Senior Vice President
Sparrow Health System
Joshua Kooistra, DO
Senior Vice President, Chief Medical Officer
Spectrum Health West Michigan
Jeffrey S Desmond, MD
Chief Medical Officer
University of Michigan Health System
Gar Atchison
UP Health System Market President
UP Health System
Mark S. Hausman, Jr., MD
Chief of Staff
VA Ann Arbor Healthcare System