MINEPOLIS (AP) – The head of one of the Midwest’s largest regional health systems has told his staff he’s recovered from Covid-19 and returned to office fees – without a mask.
Kelby Crab Benhoft, president and chief executive of Sanford Health, said in an email on Wednesday that he believes he is now immune to the disease for “at least seven months and maybe years to come” and is not at risk of infecting anyone. Will have to show.
The emails come from Crabbenhoft, who is not a physician, as hospitals across the region, including their own network, are struggling to cope with the plight of some of the country’s most dire patients. And it comes at a time when wearing masks remains an issue of political fabrication in many states.
Located in Sanford Health, South Dakota, South Dakota, there are 46 46 hospitals and more than 200 clinics in South Dakota, North Dakota, Minnesota and Iowa. It employs about 50,000 people. Dakota has had the country’s worst spread rate for several weeks, while Iowa lags behind, while Minnesota will hold on.
“Ignoring the effectiveness and purpose of the mask for wearing my mask and sending a false message that I am susceptible to infection or can transition to it,” Kribbenhoff wrote in an email received by the Associated Press. “I am not interested in using the mask as a symbolic gesture. … It is the duty of me and my team to express truth and facts and reality and not to feed the opposite. “
Christy Noime of the South Dakota government has refused to impose Statewide mask command. North Dakota Governor Doug Bergum did so last week after months of pressure. Other Republican governors, including Iowa’s Kim Reynolds, have begun turning to the mask order. As their hospitals fill up. The Democratic governor of Minnesota, Tim Wallace, ordered Back to July.
Krabbenhoft did not immediately respond to an interview request Friday. But five top Sanford health officials on Friday sent a follow-up email to employees trying to back up their statement.
“We know that words have meaning, and words have power, and we are sorry that many were disappointed and disappointed with this message,” said Matt Fischer, chief rating officer Matt Fischer and others. Said in a written letter. He went on to say: “Whether you have a virus or not, it is recommended that you wear a mask when you are not socially isolated. Our masking policy for Sanford Health remains the same. “
In a separate statement, Executive Vice President Micah Ebersen said K. Benhoft’s email was based on his own experience with COVID-19 and his personal opinions about the virus.
“They don’t reflect the views of our health system,” Ebers said. “Sanford Health’s condition is the same as it always is – constantly wearing masks, avoiding crowds and staying home if you’re sick is serious about preventing the spread of the virus.”
Sanford Health requires clinic staff and hospital and clinic visitors to wear masks, according to its website. Officials’ statements did not take into account whether Crab Benhoft had to comply with the company’s mask requirements.
CEO thinks his email that he has not explained why it is immune for at least seven months. Scientists do not yet know how coronavirus protects against future disease, or how long a defense can last. It is also unclear how long an infected person can spread the virus, but scientists believe that people usually clear it within about 10 days of the onset of symptoms unless they have a weakened immune system or some other condition.
Krabenhoft acknowledged that masks are a good idea for people who have not contracted the virus and therefore risk getting it and then spreading it.
“It’s important for them to know that using masks is just their plain smart and in their best interest,” he wrote.
But the president of the North Dakota chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics, Dr. Kathy Anderson said Krubbenhoft’s message was “definitely not helpful” and “especially dangerous to send to North Dakota right now.”
Getting conflicting messages for the general public is hard to know what they believe, Anderson said. And he said it’s important for people to know he’s not a therapist.
“Leaders in the state and across the country need to understand the power of leadership,” Anderson said. “The power of leadership is not just to tell others what they need to do. The power of leadership lies in the modeling behaviors that others need to follow. “
Tessa Johnson, president of the North Dakota Nurses Association, called Krabebenhoft’s message “disappointing.”
“I think one of the things is that we’ve really tried to get people to wear masks and social distance.” “And when a public figure says the opposite, it just confuses people.”
Rab dated benahophtane Sioux leader said R F s ARGS This is the story published Friday that he does not feel the need to mask the command of South Dakota. He said his hospital system is in a position to control any increase in COVID-19 patients before vaccinations become widely available.
“At the moment, we feel like we’ve got this under control,” Cribbenhoft said. “There’s no crisis.”
But another major regional health system, Sioux Falls-based Evra, told a South Dakota legislator on Friday that it now supports the mask order after not stopping to support them before. Democratic rip. In a letter to Linda Duba, the Everest executive said the organization was “forced to change its attitude” in light of the increase in Covid-19 patients, the fatigue of its front-line caregivers, and the healthy staff and support for it. Businesses and schools open.
The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention The centers advise people to wear masks Because they help prevent infected people – whether they know it or not – from spreading the coronavirus. He also says that masks, even to a lesser degree, can protect non-infected wearers.
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The report was contributed by Stephen Groves, a journalist with the Associated Press in Sioux Falls.
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