The Delta variant is serious. Here’s why it's on the rise.

National Geographic – By Sanjay Mishra

With vaccination rates slowing in the United States, and other countries struggling to secure vaccines, public health experts have growing concerns that the so-called Delta coronavirus variant, first identified in India in March, could trigger dramatic rises in cases and deaths in the U.S. and the world.

The Delta variant already accounts for 18 percent of cases in Colorado, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Utah, and Wyoming, and about six percent of cases nationwide. It has already spread to more than 70 countries and is now the most dominant variant in India, the United Kingdom, and Singapore. Last week, Delta caused more than 90 percent of the new COVID-19 cases in the U.K., leading to a 65 percent bump in new infections since May 1. On Monday, to curb Delta’s spread, the U.K. government decided to postpone “freedom day,” which would mark the end of public health restrictions.

The Delta variant is 60 percent more transmissible than the Alpha variant—first identified in the U.K.—which in turn was about 50 percent more transmissible than the ancestral Wuhan strain. “It’s a super spreader variant, that is worrisome,” says Eric Topol, founder and director of the Scripps Research Translational Institute. It has features that enable escape from the immune system and is perhaps more evasive than the Beta variant (B.1.351) first identified in South Africa, which was the worst until now, says Topol. “Plus, it has the highest transmissibility of anything we've seen so far. It's a very bad combination.”

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Supreme Court dismisses ACA challenge

Last Thursday, the U.S. Supreme Court dismissed the challenge to the Affordable Care Act in a 7-2 decision. Court Justices did not rule on the constitutionality of the law, but said no harm was caused to the plaintiffs, and consequently there was no legal standing to sue, because Congress had reduced the individual mandate penalty to zero dollars.

"For these reasons, we conclude that the plaintiffs in this suit failed to show a concrete, particularized injury fairly traceable to the defendants' conduct in enforcing the specific statutory provision they attack as unconstitutional," Justice Breyer wrote in the decision. "They have failed to show that they have standing to attack as unconstitutional the Act's minimum essential coverage provision." Justices Alito and Gorsuch dissented from the majority opinion.
 

Rehab program helps frail older adults with heart failure

Heart failure is the leading cause of hospitalization among older adults in the United States. In heart failure, the heart doesn’t pump enough blood to meet the body’s needs. People with heart failure live with symptoms that greatly reduce their quality of life. These can include shortness of breath, exhaustion, coughing, and swelling in the legs and abdomen.

Studies have shown that exercise training can help reduce symptoms in people with heart failure. However, such studies have largely excluded frail older adults with other health conditions. Due to bed rest and other factors, this group is especially vulnerable to experiencing physical decline while hospitalized for heart failure.

A research team led by Dr. Dalane Kitzman from Wake Forest University tested a new exercise rehabilitation program built specifically for older, frail adults. The goal of the program was to improve people’s endurance, measured by the amount of time they could walk unaided. It also addressed problems with strength, balance, and mobility that prevented people from making endurance gains.

The program was personalized to each individual’s baseline abilities and goals. Unlike other exercise rehabilitation strategies, the new program was designed to begin while people were still hospitalized, rather than after discharge. It then included outpatient sessions three times a week for three months.

At a Glance

  • Older, frail adults with heart failure who participated in a personalized physical rehab program improved their endurance, strength, balance, and quality of life.
  • More than 80% of participants reported that they were still exercising at home six months after completing the program.

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Diversity and Entrepreneurship in Physical Therapy: A Panel Discussion

The APTA Colorado Chapter Student SIG presents a panel discussion with clinicians from varying professional and personal backgrounds who will be discussing entrepreneurship in physical therapy.

When: Wednesday, June 23 | 6:00pm - 7:30pm MT

This FREE discussion is live via Zoom and open to all Students, PTs, PTAs and non-members. 

Click here for more information.

 
 

Southwest Virtual CE Webinar Series: Therapy Workshop

When: June 23, 2021 (12:30pm – 4:00pm MT/ 2:30pm - 6:00pm ET)
CE: 3.0 Approved PT CEUs/3.0 Approved OT CEUs

The Home Care & Hospice Association of Colorado and six other Southwest State partners are hosting a Therapy workshop on 6/23. This is a great event for PT, OT, ST, and Administrators. Register to attend the live virtual event on 06/23/21 or watch the on-demand recording later! Download Flyer

  • The Future of Therapy in the Home (60 Minutes)
    Presenters: Dee Kornetti, PT, MA, HCS-D, HCS-C & Jason R. Falvey, PT, DPT, PhD 

    This session will provide the attendee with an overview of the current delivery of therapy in the home health setting, with an eye to future opportunities and possibilities. A review of current research and available data will be discussed to facilitate understanding of the benefit of therapy in the post-acute space within the context of PDGM and the COVID-19 pandemic.

  • Vital Signs – So What? (60 Minutes)

    Presenters: Jennifer Chung-Peck, PT, DPT, ATC & Jenny Underdown, PTA

    Our goal is to engage the learner in the interpretation of vital signs. We will provide the learner with current information on normal and abnormal vital signs. We will educate the learner on the importance of regular vitals assessment and how to use these tools to improve patient care.

  • The Cardiopulmonary and COVID Connection: Pathway to the Heart of the Issue (60 Minutes)
    Presenters: Derek Michael, PT, MPT & Jason Sasser, PTA, CWT, CSST, COOS

    In the continuance of the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency, new data is emerging almost daily linking the short-term and long-term effects that COVID-19 is having on the infected populations’ Cardiopulmonary system. Through swift clinical innovation and teamwork, HealthPRO Heritage developed COVID-19 and Cardiopulmonary Pathways to combat therapy and nursing functional limitations that presented with their patient across all continuums of care.

Click here to Register! Use discount code APTACO% at checkout to receive a discounted price of $75 for this workshop! You will need to make a prospect profile with HHAC in order to register. 
 
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