Category Archives: Ascension

In the four NFL Drafts from 2016 through 2019, four Minnesota players heard their names called. Over the three-day event in 2020, teams selected five Gophers, the most in a single draft since 1990.

Since the modern draft era, when the NFL Draft reduced the number of rounds to seven in 1994, Minnesota had never managed to have more than four players selected in one year. That changed over the past weekend. For head coach P.J. Fleck, it is another indication that his program is on the rise.

"Huge not only for them, but for Gophers football," Fleck said prior to the draft. "I think this kicks off the multi-player draft classes from the University of Minnesota from now on."

The Gophers ended the 2019 season ranked No. 10 in the AP poll, their highest finish in 57 years. At this year's draft, they once again stood among the nations' best programs. Minnesota's five players drafted tied for the 11th most of any team.

One significant feat no Gopher accomplished this year was getting selected in the first round. Since the New England Patriots drafted Laurence Maroney 21st overall in 2006, no Minnesota payer has been selected in the first 32 picks.

However, safety Antoine Winfield Jr. did become highest-drafted player since Ra'Shede Hageman went 37th overall in 2014. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers picked Winfield 45th overall, the 13th selection in the second round.

"You look on ESPN yesterday and the headline, there were three people up there," Fleck said. "And one of them was Antoine Winfield Jr. in the picture, talking about the NFL Draft on the main page of ESPN. I think that is awesome for our brand, awesome for the state of Minnesota, wonderful for Antoine and his teammates."

The Buccaneers then took a second Gopher in round five, drafting wide receiver Tyler Johnson. Three more Minnesota defensive players were selected, beginning with linebacker Kamal Martin, who the Green Bay Packers selected with the 175th overall pick. In the final round, the New York Giants chose a pair of Gophers, drafting linebacker Carter Coughlin and cornerback Chris Williamson.

Afterwards, two more Minnesota players turned pro, joining teams as undrafted free agents. Running back Rodney Smith signed with the Carolina Panthers and defensive lineman Sam Renner went to the Los Angeles Rams.

For Fleck, it is no coincidence that Minnesota's most successful draft in 30 years followed its first 11-win season since 1904. He says developing players into professional prospects is a sign of the program's health and strong culture.

"It is going to propel us into the future," Fleck said. "When you start to look at next year and the year after, not only are guys going to start getting drafted, they are going to start thinking about leaving early... That's going to be really positive for our program."

Moving forward, Fleck hopes that it becomes common place for Minnesota to send multiple players to the NFL. Expectations for Gophers football are significantly higher than in years prior. With key players returning for next season and strong recruiting classes on the horizon, there is Hucause for optimism that the program's increased success in over the past 12 months will continue in the future.

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Draft day success another sign of Gopher football's ascension - Minnesota Daily

As elective surgeries resume Monday in Florida, Gov. Ron DeSantis and hospital officials are reassuring Floridians that it really is safe to go to the hospital.

One of the biggest problems weve had in the last six weeks is people that have heart problems or stroke symptoms deciding they dont want to go to the hospital. And sometimes that is because they are worried about being exposed to COVID, DeSantis said Sunday at a Daytona Beach hospital. If you do have those, the hospital is safe place to be, and taking care of yourself is really, really important.

Its important we take careful and measured steps to ensure a safe return to providing full access to healthcare services while also continuing to serve and support individuals and communities impacted by COVID-19, said Ascension Florida and Gulf Coast Chief Clinical Officer Dr. Huson Gilberstadt. As these events unfold, patients can expect expanded access to healthcare services with enhanced safeguards to ensure our sites of care continue to serve as healing environments where quality care is delivered with the highest levels of safety and compassion.

Ascension Sacred Heart operates hospitals in Pensacola, Miramar Beach, Panama City and Port St. Joe. Those facilities will maintain temporary visitor restrictions and screening protocols for individuals entering hospitals, including temperature checks for 99.5 degrees or higher. The health system will also require every patient scheduled for an elective or non-emergency surgery to undergo appropriate screening and testing for COVID-19 prior to their planned surgery date. Following their screening and testing, patients will be asked to self-quarantine until their surgery.Although COVID-19 is still present, we understand that individuals in our local communities have healthcare needs outside of COVID-19, said Ascension Florida and Gulf Coast President and CEO Tom VanOsdol. Our return to surgery approach is in full compliance with Governor DeSantis recent direction and led by our clinicians, who are working with our providers on a strategic process to keep our patients, associates and physicians safe and informed throughout this time of transition.

With the reintroduction of elective procedures, hospital staff will begin the process of contacting patients to reschedule procedures that were postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, using clinical judgment to prioritize scheduling for patients with the most immediate needs. Services will also be available for patients to take a proactive role in their health and schedule appointments and regular doctors visits online or over the phone.

Baptist Hospital also resumes elective surgeries on Monday.

Baptist will continue to implement social distancing, universal masking and screening of all patients and visitors, according to a statement. Baptist physician offices are reaching out directly to patients whose procedures were postponed due to the order to suspend services that was issued in March. Patients visiting a Baptist facility are encouraged to bring and wear masks.

Our teams look forward to welcoming back patients into our care and will take every precaution to ensure safety, Baptist said.

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Elective Surgeries Reopen Monday. Local Hospitals And DeSantis Reassure Residents It Is Safe. - NorthEscambia.com

Ascension St. Vincents announced plans to begin a phased, measured and clinically led process to resume surgeries for certain elective and medically necessary procedures at its sites of care across central Alabama in accordance with Governor Kay Iveys recent direction to selectively ease social distancing restrictions.

Effective May 1, the health system will gradually reintroduce the availability of certain elective surgeries and medically necessary procedures while continuing efforts to serve and support patients, associates and communities impacted by COVID-19. The timing of this development will proceed in stages with guidance from health officials as well as federal, state and local authorities, and in accordance with Ascensions system-wide safety and infection control protocols.

As the number of new cases across Ascension St Vincents began to stabilize a couple of weeks ago, much of our time has been spent planning for a safe, gradual return to full operations. This planning has been led by our clinicians and we are prepared to safely reintroduce elective procedures, while continuing to serve and support individuals and communities impacted by COVID-19, said Chris Moore, Chief Operating Officer and Chief Nursing Officer, Ascension St. Vincents.

In the meantime, and until further notice, all Ascension St. Vincents facilitieshospitals, emergency rooms, clinics and officeswill continue to implement recommended infection control precautions with enhanced safeguards to minimize the exposure risks related to COVID-19 for patients and caregivers. Ascension St. Vincents facilities will maintain the required visitor restrictions and screening protocols for all individuals entering hospitals.

Additional enhanced safeguards for in-person visits include:

Screening. All associates are screened for COVID-19 symptoms before they come to work and have their temperature taken at our entry points to ensure they are healthy before entering or interacting with patients at Ascension St. Vincents care facilities. Additionally, we are pre-screening patients for potential COVID-19 symptoms prior to procedures.

Cleaning and disinfecting. Environmental services teams will continue to perform rigorous disinfecting measures at all Ascension St. Vincents facilities.

Visitor Restrictions & Universal Masking. Temporary visitor restrictions were put in place by the Governor to protect patients and staff. Ascension St. Vincent's facilities will maintain the required visitor restrictions. Please contact your local facility for specific information and know that masks are required for entry into our facilities.

Waiting room distancing. Waiting areas have been arranged to ensure social distancing and immediate disinfection.

Urgent care needs. Unless its an emergency, patients are asked to call ahead and not to arrive unannounced at Ascension St. Vincents care facilities. By calling ahead, individuals can learn about and follow the safety procedures for each facility and schedule a safer time to visit.

Appointment scheduling. Ascension St, Vincents is offering staggered appointment slots and procedure times to reduce the number of patients with overlapping wait times.

On March 18, Ascension St. Vincents began postponing and canceling elective surgeries and non-urgent medical procedures at its hospitals and sites of care as a special precaution to help prevent the spread of infection and to help conserve resources and increase capacity for its system-wide response to COVID-19. Simultaneously, social distancing efforts established by federal, state and local governments were put in place to help communities flatten the curve and control the spread of COVID-19. During that time, Ascension St. Vincents hospitals continued to provide emergency surgeries and services for patients with emergency needs while also providing patients with convenient 24/7 access to providers via virtual care options and telemedicine. Now, Ascension St. Vincents facilities are following the guidance and direction of federal, state, and local authorities to gradually begin reintroducing certain elective surgeries, medically necessary procedures and other in-person services that should not be delayed.

Although COVID-19 is still in our communities, we understand that individuals in our local communities have emergency and healthcare needs outside of COVID-19, many of which cannot be delayed or deferred without serious health risks, said Jason Alexander, Chief Executive Officer, St. Vincents Health System. Our return to surgery approach is in full compliance with Governor Iveys recent direction and led by our clinicians, who are working with our providers on a process to keep our patients, associates and physicians safe and informed throughout this time of transition.

With the reintroduction of certain elective procedures, St. Vincents staff will begin the process of contacting patients to reschedule procedures that were postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, using clinical judgment to prioritize scheduling for patients with the most urgent and immediate needs.

For individuals experiencing symptoms of a heart attack, stroke, respiratory distress, emergency mental health concerns, or other acute illness or injury, a hospital emergency room is still the safest, most appropriate place to get care. Click here to find Ascension ERs in your area.

All Ascension St.Vincents hospitals will continue their COVID-19 readiness and response plans to both eliminate the spread of the virus and to immediately manage any possible surge of patients in need of care for the virus.

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St. Vincent's announces plans for resuming certain elective surgeries and non-urgent procedures - Newsaegis

KALAMAZOO, MI -- Kalamazoos two major hospitals have signed onto a national initiative to use plasma donated from coronavirus survivors as a treatment for current patients.

Bronson Methodist and Ascension Borgess hospitals both have recovered as well as currently hospitalized COVID-19 patients.

Both are working with Versiti Blood Center to receive the plasma donations. The center has locations in Portage, Grand Rapids and Grandville.

Related: Southwest Michigan hospital treating COVID-19 patients with plasma of survivors

On Wednesday, April 29, Bronson requested its first plasma transfer for a patient, said Dr. Carla Schwalm, medical director of Bronson Childrens Hospital Pediatric Hematology and Oncology.

At that time, the downtown hospital was caring for 21 patients and has recorded 42 recoveries, according to Bronsons data.

Though Ascension Borgess has declined to disclose a precise number of patients and recoveries, citing patient privacy, Chief Medical Director Thomas Rohs said the hospital is treating about 15 COVID-19 patients on average.

Since April 18, Ascension Borgess has enrolled six patients to receive plasma donations, Rohs said.

The plasma treatment would give current patients passive immunity," said both Rohs and Schwalm.

A plasma transfusion from a survivor transfers antibodies that have been exposed to COVID-19 to the current patient. Those antibodies can attack the virus and improve the chances of the patient getting not as sick or of them recovering faster, Schwalm said.

This is different than what a vaccine can offer, she said. A vaccine is usually composed of a dead or mild strain of the virus, and then the body creates antibodies in response.

You are not exposed to the virus by receiving somebodys plasma, Schwalm said. You are only getting the benefit of that person having been exposed to the virus, and then they made these little proteins.

To be able to donate plasma, a coronavirus survivor needs to be free of symptoms for 28 days, Schwalm said.

The first person to receive a plasma donation at Ascension Borgess has since been released from the hospital, Rohs said. But it is too soon to tell what role the plasma played in the patients recovery.

Given the small pool of people who are eligible to give and receive the treatment, it will be a slow process to determine if plasma is boosting immune systems like its predicted to, Rohs said.

But, as time passes and recovery numbers increase, so will the number of eligible donors, he said.

For the precious few who are out there and truly recovered and feeling well if you line up and stick your arm out to get some plasma available to people, that would be great, Rohs said.

The median number of days patients are feeling symptomatic is around 19 days, he said. When symptoms escalate to a point where hospitalization is needed, those patients usually stay about three days in the COVID-19 unit, Rohs said.

Although the plasma treatment success rate is unknown, there are very few risks, Rohs said. For that reason, the treatment became the best defense in this unprecedented battle.

These people are incredibly sick," Rohs said. If there is any opportunity to have a treatment specific to this disease, other than what were calling supportive care, we felt really compelled to try to maximize their chances by putting this in place.

A visual representation of the increasing case counts and death toll in Kalamazoo County is shown below, based on data reported by the state. Apparent conflicts in data reported there result from slight differences in daily case counts provided by state and county health officials.

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Kalamazoo hospitals begin treating coronavirus patients with plasma donations - MLive.com

One of them was Dr. Chris Firlit, a 37-year-old husband and father of three. Firlit was a member of the Wayne State University's class of 2018, and lived in Berkley.

Firlit was a senior resident in the oral maxillofacial surgery program at Ascension Macomb Hospital. Wayne State announced his death Tuesday and said he had died this week, but did not provide the exact date.

Firlit received a bachelors degree from Wake Forest University and earned his doctor of dental surgery degree from Nova Southern University in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, before joining the WSU School of Medicine.

"It grieves me greatly to inform you that a recent graduate of our school of medicine has died, presumptively due to complications of COVID-19," Dr. Jack Sobel, dean of the medical school, said in announcing the death.

"Dr. Firlits death obviously hits very close to home. His dedication to assisting patients during this pandemic drives home the seriousness of this virus, and is emblematic of the fortitude and commitment of the physicians we train," Sobel said.

Sobel urged faculty, medical students, residents and alumni to "do everything possible to keep safe while you practice your dedication to the science of medicine and patients."

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Ascension doctor becomes 7th Michigan health care worker to die of coronavirus - Bridge Michigan

Ascension President and CEO Joseph R. Impicciche

In an email to 160,000 employees, Ascension President and CEO Joseph R. Impicciche said the health system will protect their pay if they're temporarily assigned to different jobs or unable to work for reasons linked to COVID-19. Impicciche said the protection will come through such programs as furlough pay, pay continuation, PTO advance, worker's compensation and short-term disability.

Ascension Saint Thomas is proud to share the ways that Ascension national leaders have committed to care for our associates during this challenging and unprecedented time. Ascension is committed to protecting the pay of associates by offering benefits and solutions like pay continuation, dependent care funds, and more, in order to help our associates care for themselves while also caring for those we serve.

"As Middle Tennessee battles the COVID-19 pandemic, I have been proud to witness Ascension Saint Thomas' strength and commitment to serve, made possible by our associates," said Tim Adams, Ascension Saint Thomas CEO. "We are proud to take care of those that are courageously caring for our communities by alleviating uncertainty around their financial well-being."

Ascension also will offer daycare subsidies and reimbursements for employees who care for infected patients and may need to stay in a hotel for social-distancing purposes, the email stated. "We are blessed to be able to make this commitment and appreciate the tremendous work and flexibility of our associates, leaders and physicians in providing compassionate, personalized care," Impicciche wrote. "I am proud to witness the way all associates have come together to address the challenges of today, just like we have throughout our history."

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Ascension Saint Thomas Announces Commitment to Protect Pay of Employees Shifted or Unable to Work During COVID-19 Pandemic - Wgnsradio

PRAIRIEVILLE- The Ascension Parish Sheriff's Office is following up on leads after thieves managed to get away with at least $40,000 worth of expensive tools inside a locked trailer. It happened in a new subdivision that is under construction in Prairieville.

Contractor Steve Ring said he showed up to tow his trailer to a storage shed Thursday morning and realized it felt rather light. He noticed thieves cut the mechanisms used to lock the trailer. Once inside, the thieves helped themselves to a buffet of expensive power equipment.

"The latch was chewed off with bolt cutters. I opened it up, and all my tools inside are gone," Ring said.

He immediately contacted the sheriff's office which began an investigation and started searching for surveillance video. The thieves were captured on camera between 11 pm and midnight in the brand new subdivision that backs up to Interstate 10 near the Prairieville exit.

"I would do whatever I could to help anybody," Ring said. "To steal from somebody, it doesn't make sense."

The sheriff's office said it is following up on leads right now. Ring said law enforcement dusted the trailer for fingerprints.

"The thing that gets me the most is some of those tools my dad had left before he passed away, and those are things I won't get back," Ring said.

Although the official total is about $40,000, Ring said he's been invoicing what was stolen with tracked serial numbers. As of late Thursday, he said the total was nearing at least $60,000. Ring said he's disheartened that while so many people are out of work, the criminals who targeted him found an illegal job at the height of Louisiana's stay-at-home order.

"For people to steal from people, it's a shame," Ring said. "It really is a shame."

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Deputies searching for thieves who pulled off $40,000 tool heist in Ascension Parish - WBRZ

Facebook pages and groups have been created to provide networking opportunities among Ascension Parish residents.

During a time of social distancing, many are utilizing social media to keep in touch during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Facebook pages and groups have been created to provide networking opportunities among Ascension Parish residents.

Save Ascension Businesses, with some 800 followers, was created by St. Amant Fire Chief and Constable James E. LeBlanc as a platform to support local businesses during the economic downturn.

Local businesses are the heartbeat and backbone of small towns like our own, and they need our help in times like these, the pages pinned post read.

Daily posts feature a variety of businesses from around the parish, sharing special offers and inventory updates.

Louisiana has 437,437 small businesses, which account for 99.5 percent of the state's businesses, according to the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA). The state has 917,466 small business employees, a representation of 53 percent of Louisiana's employees.

Aside from promoting small businesses in the area, others have been sharing general information of interest to locals.

COVID-19: Surviving in Ascension Parish was created to provide networking, resources, and moral support. It had more than 1,750 members over the weekend.

Mary Wesley Babin and Buddy Legnon serve as administrators for the group.

"Buddy and I have tried to keep this site very clean and informative," Babin said. "It's been a pleasure having everyone on this site."

One member has posted a prayer every day for members, she said.

Also, the group plans on holding a drawing for an Ascension Parish family or single parent currently unemployed.

"We will be giving away some seasoning, groceries, and essentials," Babin said.

Tara Broussard said the group is the only one she uses for local information on coronavirus.

Though some comments to posts have been snippy, overall she's found the group informative and encouraging.

"No group is perfect, and I don't expect it to be," she said.

Lori Thacker said she follows just one group to avoid an overload of coronavirus information.

"I've learned a lot about COVID-19 and how it's affecting my community. This is the only group like this I'm in," she said.

Jenny Brignac Kocke has been impressed with the level of civility of the members.

"It's probably one of the most civil ones in all of Facebook!" she said. "Which isn't an easy task. It's very informative, as well as helpful."

Lydia Brown also found the group's posts helpful.

"I get a lot of information here," she said.

Belinda Guillot and Cathryn Stanley both agreed that the group was a great resource.

"It keeps those in our area on top of the latest information," Stanley said.

This group is very informative, and I like that its local, Kari Millet added.

Deanna Roberts Bourgeois has been checking in every day.

"Using technology to stay connected as a community can be powerful," she said.

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Ascension residents turn to social media in time of social distancing - Weekly Citizen

Before he became known as an innovator in the field of hot air ballooning, John Wise, who is considered the Father of American Aeronautics. ascended to the skies over Lycoming County.

On the 24th of July, 1841, John Wise, the famous balloonist, made an ascension from Williamsport which attracted the attention of people from miles around, historian John F. Meginness wrote in an account of the flight.

Wise, a native of Lancaster, was 33 years old when he made his flight here. According to Meginness, it was the balloonists 30th ascension.

The earliest record of a successful manned hot air balloon flight was in 1783 in France, where a balloon made by the Montgolfier brothers first across the Parisian skyline carrying two men about a little over five miles before landing safely. Even before that, man had explored the idea of hot air lifting a balloon off the ground, similar to a Chinese lantern.

According to biographical account in the Lancaster history, John Wise had been interested in flight from an early age. An anecdote on Lancasters historical site said that as a young boy he had even tied his cat to a homemade parachute and observed the cats safe descent from a local church steeple.

Wises first ascension was made in 1835, six years before he soared over the mountains south of Williamsport. In his lifetime Wise was reported to have made 462 balloon ascensions.

The flight here was witnessed by hundreds of spectators, according to Meginness.

The balloon rose gracefully to a great height and then sailed over Bald Eagle mountain and was soon lost to view, the account of the flight stated.

His descent wasnt without drama, as Meginness related it.

He descended in White Deer valley, landing in front of the house of Mr. Deeter, badly frightening two women, who were the only inmates. Mr. Wise succeeded in convincing them that he was not an evil spirit, when they came out and viewed the wonder, Meginness wrote of the event.

Wise with being a part of a balloon corps during the Civil War, flying over Arlington, Virginia, to spy on Confederate forces, according to historical accounts. Wise is also believed to have made the first air mail delivery in 1859.

Unlike most bloodstains of that time period, Wise is reported to have approached ballooning from the perspective of a scientist, conducted experiments in atmospheric pressure and pneumatics during his flights. He was reported to be one of the first people to notice the air flow over the ocean, which we know now as the jet stream, according to a history of aeronautics.

His last flight, in 1879, ended with his balloon landing in Lake Michigan, where it is believed that Wise drowned.

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MILWAUKEE -- "If I become sick, I don't want to even say anything," one nurse said.

In that single sentence, she summarized what seven Wisconsin nurses, doctors, and medical assistants spent hours describing to FOX6. The employees, who work for various area health systems, expressed fear that their employers' policies will discourage sick medical professionals from staying home, while encouraging the spread of COVID-19.

Meanwhile, health system administrators say they're trying to protect their workers while ensuring they have enough staff to respond to the current health crisis.

"My number one concern is obviously the safety of the public," the nurse said.

'How would I know?'

"I'd been controlling the fever pretty much with Tylenol and ibuprofen, but I was still getting night sweats," an Advocate Aurora medical assistant said. "And then I was actually short of breath."

It took the medical assistant four days to get tested for COVID-19, and four more to receive the negative results.

"But they did say since I had a little bit of a cough, I had to remain home until I was three days symptom-free without any fever control medications," he said, adding that he used ten days of personal time off, or PTO, during the time he followed instructions and stayed home.

"I just said, 'Hey this is what happened and I'm just looking to see if I can get time back for the quarantine pay,'" the medical assistant said. "And the response was, 'Did you have a confirmed work case exposure?'"

"How would I know?" he asked.

How it works

Employees gave FOX6 copies of Advocate Aurora, Froedtert Health, Froedtert South, and Ascension policies about COVID-19 leave. The pandemic is forcing health systems to change their policies frequently, sometimes daily, but employees provided the most up-to-date paperwork they had.

While the health system leave policies differ in several ways, each outlined a manner in which employees would be paid if exposed to a confirmed COVID-19 case on the job.

But with strict restrictions on who can get tested for COVID-19 and delays in receiving test results, health care workers say they're usually unsure if, when, or where they were exposed. That means medical professionals who show symptoms of COVID-19 could end up at home using PTO or going without pay.

What's the big deal?

If sick leave is meant to be used when employees are sick, why does it matter if doctors, nurses, and medical assistants need to use that leave when exhibiting COVID-19 symptoms from unknown sources?

Every health care worker who spoke to FOX6 expressed concern that, in this pandemic, requiring medical professionals to use their often-limited PTO or go without pay will discourage them from staying home if they're sick, and instead encourage the spread of COVID-19 to their vulnerable patients.

The policies

Advocate Aurora's policy dated March 30, 2020 says employees receive "quarantine pay" if exposed to a confirmed COVID-19 case at work. "Personal exposure" requires the use of PTO; employees are permitted to "borrow" against future PTO. Previous versions of the policy specified that employees would need to take unpaid time off in the absence of PTO.

Froedtert South, which includes Froedtert Kenosha Hospital and Froedtert Pleasant Prairie Hospial, has a policy saying employees who test positive for COVID-19 due to workplace exposure will be asked to fill out a worker's compensation claim, while employees with COVID-19 symptoms will "follow standard call-in/attendance procedures.

The policy says employees who test positive for COVID-19 from "personal exposure" and are not eligible for benefits will be unpaid.

"If I call in and tell you I have a sore throat or a cough, I get quarantined for 14 days without pay," a Froedtert South nurse said. "So there are many people that are the sole breadwinners of their family. So do you really think they're going to tell the truth and say, `Uh, yeah I'm not feeling very well?'"

"It will spread," a different Froedtert South nurse said. "A hundred percent. Because we're not being tested and we're not being compensated if we get infected. So who wants to go up there and be like, 'Oh, I feel like I have shortness of breath and I woke up today with a fever and it's kind of hard for me to breath,' when I know I'm going to be sent home without pay? People are going to come to work and it's going to spread."

"Were not protected in that sense," she continued. "And that is scary. That is downright scary."

Froedtert Health, which includes Froedtert Hospital, Froedtert West Bend Hospitals, and Froedtert Menomonee Falls Hospital, has different human resources policies. Those documents say staff will continue to receive full pay if they test positive for COVID-19 or are quarantined, but the paperwork provided to FOX6 does not detail what happens to employees who are exhibiting COVID-19 symptoms.

Ascension's policy says employees are paid for work-related exposure, and use a combination of PTO and/or short-term disability for "social-related" exposure.

None of the health system policy documents provided to FOX6 specify exactly how the workplaces will determine whether an employee's potential COVID-19 exposure is work-related.

"How are we supposed to feed our kids, our family?" a Froedtert South nurse asked. "Pay our mortgage, our bills? Buy food? Everybody there wants to protect the public. But unfortunately, we just arent having the means presented to us."

Health systems respond

FOX6 asked Advocate Aurora, Ascension Wisconsin, Froedtert Health, and Froedtert South for copies of their most updated COVID-19 leave policies. None of the health systems provided the documentation, nor did they answer specific questions about how those policies work.

Instead, company spokespeople sent statements outlining how they are trying to provide additional resources for their employees during the pandemic. Employees who work closely with administrators but were not authorized to talk to the press about this issue emphasized the difficult balance of protecting employees and ensuring there are enough staff members to handle future predicted surges in COVID-19 cases.

An Aurora Advocate spokesperson said:

"We are grateful for the unwavering commitment of our team members during this public health crisis. Our approach to supporting team members who need to be away from work continues to evolve as the crisis unfolds. The care of our team members is always top of mind, and weve made available a number of resources and introduced new programs, including an enhanced PTO policy and an innovative partnership with the YMCA of Metropolitan Milwaukee, to support them during these challenging times."

An Ascension Wisconsin spokesperson emailed:

"The safety of our patients and caregivers is our utmost priority as we all work to slow the transmission of COVID-19 and care for all those in need. As cases of COVID-19 increase, Ascension Wisconsin continuestoaggressively respondtothis evolving situationtoensure we are protecting our patients, associates and the communities we serve. We are constantly reassessing and updating our policies and guidelinesin accordance with CDC recommendations."

"As part of our commitment toour associates, Ascension Wisconsin is helping associates who are requiredtowork during this national crisis who may have additional unexpected dependent care needs during the COVID-19 public health emergency. Ascension Wisconsin Foundations has developed a statewide resource for all Ascension Wisconsin associates who areinneed of childcaretoconnect themto those needed and available resources."

In an email, a Froedtert Health spokesperson outlined efforts to expand the number of staff working from home, create a platform to connect employees with child care, and provide additional resources for mental health and emotional health needs.

Froedtert South did not respond.

"I used to be in the military, I get the whole situation," the Advocate Aurora medical assistant said. "They need to have the people they need to do the work. But they also need to protect the people who do the work."

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Wisconsin health care workers worry limited access to paid leave will allow COVID-19 to spread - WITI FOX 6 Milwaukee