October 21, 2020                                            Wednesday 7:00 am

The Bourbon County Commissioners met for a special meeting to discuss EMS and the current COVID situation and the hospital/community response to COVID.  Present for the meeting were the Commissioners, Justin Meeks, Shane Walker, Dave Bruner, Robert Leisure, Susan Bancroft, Ascension representatives Emergency Department Coordinator Kayla Stewart, Infection Control Nurse Jamie Cravens, and Medical Director Dr. Stebbins.  Dr. Stebbins said they know there is a transport challenge, he said they are trying to manage this locally so they don’t have a long distance transport; he said we don’t have  a hospital here, but there are hospitals close. He said with flu season getting ready to begin, it could get worse. Due to some of the local hospitals being full to capacity, the EMS is having to transport patients to hospitals further away which can cause a delay in transports for patients that need transported (lack of staffing and having enough ambulances for the transports can be a problem).  An addition ambulance and staff will help with the transport issue; Lynne said he felt the Commissioners should see what they can do to get an additional transport ambulance.  Jeff made a motion to go forward with investigating if it is feasible to staff an additional ambulance and if feasible start hiring for this temporary situation (and re-evaluate at a later date), Clifton seconded and the motion passed.   Following the three pillars of current data, current science and common sense could help with the COVID mitigation issue and help minimize the stress on the system.  Dr. Stebbins discussed how COVID is spread and encouraged mask wearing in the community.  He asked that all communities utilize the following to break the COVID chain; source control, good hand washing, social distancing and smart decisions (don’t put yourself in a bad spot, such as in a public setting where you can’t social distance).  A person in isolation or quarantine needs to follow the directions and stay in quarantine.  If a person feels sick they need to seek medical attention.  Some people with COVID will have no symptoms and some will have devastating effects from the virus.  Clifton questioned why patients are being transported south when some hospitals in the Kansas City area are only at 60% capacity.

At 8:15, Lynne made a motion to adjourn, Clifton seconded and all approved.

THE BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS

OF BOURBON COUNTY, KANSAS

(ss) Lynne Oharah, Chairman

(ss) Jeff Fischer, Commissioner

(ss) Clifton Beth, Commissioner

ATTEST:

Kendell Mason, Bourbon County Clerk

November 10, 2020, Approved Date