One Academic Health System's Early (and Ongoing) Experience Responding to COVID-19: Recommendations From the Initial Epicenter of the Pandemic in the United States

Christopher S Kim; John B Lynch; Seth Cohen; Santiago Neme; Thomas O Staiger; Laura Evans; Steven A Pergam; Catherine Liu; Chloe Bryson-Cahn; Timothy H Dellit

doi:10.1097/ACM.0000000000003410

One Academic Health System's Early (and Ongoing) Experience Responding to COVID-19: Recommendations From the Initial Epicenter of the Pandemic in the United States

Acad Med. 2020 Aug;95(8):1146-1148. doi: 10.1097/ACM.0000000000003410.

Authors

Affiliations

¹ C.S. Kim is associate medical director, Quality, Patient Safety, and Clinical Efficiency, University of Washington Medical Center, and associate professor, Division of General Internal Medicine, Department of Medicine, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, Washington.
² J.B. Lynch is medical director, Infection Prevention and Control, Harborview Medical Center, and associate professor, Division of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, Washington.
³ S. Cohen is medical director, Infection Prevention and Employee Health, University of Washington Medical Center, and clinical assistant professor, Division of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, Washington.
⁴ S. Neme is medical director, University of Washington Medical Center, Northwest Campus, and clinical assistant professor, Division of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, Washington.
⁵ T.O. Staiger is medical director, University of Washington Medical Center, and professor, Division of General Internal Medicine, Department of Medicine, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, Washington.
⁶ L. Evans is associate medical director, Critical Care, University of Washington Medical Center, and associate professor, Division of Pulmonary, Critical Care, and Sleep Medicine, Department of Medicine, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, Washington.
⁷ S.A. Pergam is medical director, Infection Prevention, Seattle Cancer Care Alliance, and associate professor, Division of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, Washington.
⁸ C. Liu is medical director, Antimicrobial Stewardship, Seattle Cancer Care Alliance, and associate professor, Division of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, Washington.
⁹ C. Bryson-Cahn is associate medical director, Infection Prevention and Control, Harborview Medical Center, and assistant professor, Division of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, Washington.
¹⁰ T.H. Dellit is chief medical officer, UW Medicine, president, UW Physicians, and professor, Division of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, Washington.

Abstract

On January 19, 2020, the first case of a patient with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in the United States was reported in Washington State. On February 29, 2020, a patient infected with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) passed away in a hospital in Seattle-King County, the first reported COVID-19-related death in the United States. That same day, a skilled nursing and rehabilitation facility in the county reported that several of its residents tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 and that many staff had symptoms compatible with COVID-19.The University of Washington Medicine health system (UW Medicine), which is based in Seattle-King County and provides quaternary care for the region, was one of several health care organizations called upon to address this growing crisis. What ensued was a series of swiftly enacted decisions and activities at UW Medicine, in partnership with local, state, and national public health agencies, to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic. Tapping into the multipronged mission areas of academic medicine, UW Medicine worked to support the community, innovate in science and clinical practice; lead policy and practice guideline development; and adopt changes as the crisis unfolded. In doing so, health system leaders had to balance their commitments to students, residents and fellows, researchers, faculty, staff, and hospital and health center entities, while ensuring that patients continued to receive cutting-edge, high-quality, safe care. In this Invited Commentary, the authors highlight the work and challenges UW Medicine has faced in responding to the global COVID-19 pandemic.

MeSH terms

Academic Medical Centers / organization & administration*
Betacoronavirus*
COVID-19
Coronavirus Infections*
Humans
Pandemics*
Pneumonia, Viral*
SARS-CoV-2
United States
Washington / epidemiology