Hello and welcome to PBS39 and WLVT.

Community update on Corona by residents brought to you by Capital Blue.

It's also brought to you with help from community partner Lehigh Valley Health Network.

We are live from the PPE Public Media Center in Bethlehem.

I'm Brittany Sweeney, our guest today include a rehab specialist who will discuss Long hauler syndrome and Covid-19 patients.

And with spring just around the corner and promising signs of better days ahead, we have someone from Discover Lehigh Valley.

We'll both be with us in just a moment.

If you have a question, you can give us a call.

The phone numbers 4 8 4 8 2 1 0 0 0 8.

Our guests will answer some of your questions live.

Plus, our daily coronavirus updates.

Be sure to sign up for our newsletter.

You can do that at our website coronavirus Lehigh Valley.

.Org.

There you can find helpful information in English and Spanish.

Now let's take a look at today's top headlines.

Tomorrow marks the one year anniversary of the very first confirmed cases of the coronavirus in Pennsylvania.

Since then, 900 44,000 people in the state have been infected and over 24,000 have died.

Unthinkable numbers at this time last year.

The good news, the supply of vaccine is picking so far 860,000 Pennsylvanians are fully vaccinated and another 1.9 million have received their first doses, according to the Health Department.

Speaking of vaccines, the Allentown Health Bureau today took a moment to update its progress on the battle against Covid-19.

The bureau has vaccinated 14,000 people in the past nine weeks.

Most of them at the Allentown Fairgrounds.

Director Vickie Kistler says the latest allocation includes 2000 doses to be given out next week.

The most so far.

I'm overwhelmed by the kindness and the appreciation that's expressed by the citizens who are vaccinated.

And I'm overwhelmed by the spirit of teamwork.

I mean, we have now weathered 30 snow storms, ice storms outside, more people needing a wheelchair than we had wheelchairs.

I mean, we adapt systems.

This is a great flexible group of people.

Atlanta is now offering free rides to vaccination appointments in both Northampton and Lehigh counties.

The transit agency says the door to door services for seniors 65 and up it's operated through lantis shared Ride for Seniors program.

Now to register call 8 8 8 2 5 3 8 3 3 3.

That phone number again 8 8 8 2 5 3 8 3 3 3.

Both Lehigh and Northampton counties are paying the fare for seniors.

Let's meet our guests for the day.

Kimberly Fritze is director of rehabilitation for Lehigh Valley Health Network.

Also here is Alicia Quinn, Vice President of marketing and strategic alliances for Discover Lehigh Valley.

Ladies, thank you both for joining us today.

Alicia will be with you in just a few moments.

In the meantime, Kimberly, we'd like to begin with you today.

Thank you so much for being here.

Thanks for having me.

Kimberly, rehabilitation is not something we typically think about when we talk about Covid-19.

But for some patients, particularly those so-called long haulers with prolonged symptoms, it's unfortunately a reality.

You've worked closely with some of those folks.

Tell us what does it mean to be a long hauler?

Let's start there.

So you bring up a really interesting point about rehab not really being bethought, but we've been talking about Covid, but rehabs been with these patients for the long haul and that's really the truth.

And if we talked about what long haulers for a year ago, we would have been having a completely different conversation than we're having today.

And when we think about our long haulers, just like our previous said here a year ago, today, we saw all our first patients diagnosed with Covid-19 in the state of Pennsylvania and here we are a year later and starting sometime this summer we started having patients that were presenting to their doctors offices, having conversations with their neighbors about noticing symptoms of body nausea, shortness of breath, still ongoing fatigue that was just preventing them from doing things that they would normally do.

And they were seeing medical attention coming to our emergency rooms talking to their doctors.

And they weren't having any diagnosis that they could pinpoint as to an acute illness.

Our physicians started looking at these patients and across the country finding that these symptoms were being noticed everywhere.

And the common theme was that all of these patients had Covid-19 diagnoses and were experiencing symptoms that were similar to when they had Covid.

And now they were supposed to have been in a time of recovery.

But we're still having Kroloff vague symptoms.

And we've started now to determine what those patients really are.

They are now are long Covid patients or our long haulers in rehab has taken a really active role in determining how it is that we are going to help these long hauler patients.

And our goal is to start doing that in our acute hospitals where rehab teams are already in place and seeing those patients when they're in the hospital and when they are acutely in the recovery phase, when they're in rehab facilities.

In short, term care facilities like our eyeglasses and our PSU over on 17th Street and ultimately in our outpatient settings where we can help them close to home and help people get back to their regular lives that they were so used to having prior to Covid.

Sure.

And what are some of the rehabilitation services that you have to offer these prolonged effects and the people who are experiencing these prolong effects?

So the effects can be so wide and so broad and rehab is just so uniquely positioned as movement experts and experts in looking at the patients and looking at the whole patient.

And we're talking to them and finding out what are the things that are really causing them.

The greatest amount of concern is that their ability to get up, get back, do the things that they want to do in just the general community.

Is it the need or the necessity to get back to work that they're not able to endure or have the stamina to get back to their regular jobs which are necessary to earn a living Gamma We have community programs that we have available to educate people about ways to just be more active.

We have work reintegration programs within our outpatient setting where patients can spend anywhere up to four hours with us and do stimulation type of work where they can prepare from an endurance standpoint, both cardiovascular early and physically and then I think the thing that's probably the most exciting and the most unique is looking at the smaller things, the things that people don't necessarily think of when you think about rehab because they're not visible, it's not broken, but it's your ability to concentrate, your ability to remember, your ability to make good decisions or to think things through.

Be situationally aware.

And we have some really great technology in our outpatient settings where we can look at those computer based programs, We have driving simulators that allow you to actually look at real time how it is that you're reacting in space and to be able to teach you some techniques to be able to cope in the interim while you're in the process of actively recovering.

Kim, this group of people you're seeing these long haul effects symptoms.

Are they a certain group, a certain age group or are they people with pre-existing conditions?

Is that across the board?

Is there a specific group that you're seeing coming into rehabilitation Gamma Well, I wish I could say that there was a diagram or that there was a platform that it was exactly this person.

So we could really identify it.

Right.

But the coronavirus is so new and we are looking at this huge wide range of people the end of February, I think they're saying something like 30 million Americans will have been diagnosed with Covid-19.

And of those, how many more have not necessarily even been proven had Covid and probably have one in every 10 patients.

They're saying we'll have some level of prologs symptoms three months after they've had Covid and that's 10%.

And that's a wide range.

And unfortunately, the person who had very mild Covid symptoms was able to maintain at home may be having prolonged symptoms for a period of time.

And your person who was in the hospital who had very severe Covid symptoms may have a quicker and active, more active recovery.

So there really is no distinct pattern to the best of the research that's out there.

What we're able to determine is the same things that place patients more at risk for developing Covid are the same them more at risk for having longer term proven symptoms.

So greater than the age of 50 years old having comorbid conditions or things that chronic conditions that you have had prior to having Covid and ultimately just like in most illnesses, having a more severe case of Covid-19 is going to affect so many more of your systems and it would ultimately puts you at a higher risk for having more complications down the line for this pandemic.

And General has just been so stressful, so I imagine that this takes a physical toll but also mental toll on people who then just can't seem to kick the symptoms and the signs of Covid-19.

I'm sure that takes a mental toll on them.

Is there help and resources for those people mentally Gamma So there absoluely.

Is an Covid has affected everyone.

I don't know that there's anybody in the world right now that will say that they have not had some symptoms of effect of Covid either.

If they have had Covid themselves, if they've been a health care worker taking care of someone with Covid, if they've been a family member or community member taking care of someone with Covid or really if we've just had such a change in our lifestyle and social isolation and changes the schedule, which for many people is just outrageously disruptive Covid has touched us all.

And while absolutely not an expert in behavioral health or in mental health, I am expert in movement and my expertise will tell you that in the research is there to prove it.

That exercise is outrageously good for your mental health.

It helps your mood.

It helps decrease anxieties.

And I like to say that if it's physical, then it's therapy.

So the more you move your body, the better you are.

And people will say to me, what do I need to come to a structured exercise or do I need to come in to you, go to the fitness center?

Do I have to go to therapy?

And the answer is move your body.

Anything that moves, move it.

It will help your body release natural endorphins that can help make you feel better.

And of course, if you need some structure, if you need some guide and exercise, we have outrageously well-trained, dedicated professionals that are able to help provides some personal attention and determining what is the right process for you and what program are you going to need in order to be put on the road to active recovery?

And I think that's the message that I really want to stress today.

As we start to talk about Long haulers and all of these pieces is that we need to be active play active roles in our own recovery and these are some simple things that we can do together with a little bit of help from your friends.

Kim, if people are still experiencing symptoms from Covid-19, you know, a month, two months out after having it, can they still get vaccinated or what's the steps that they should be taking Gamma What should they do?

Should they be going to rehabilitation Gamma Should they try to manage it at home?

What do you notice Gamma Seek help in that kind of thing?

So we're saying that right now for weeks is the program that Lehigh Valley is starting to establish for our rehab recovery program.

Move it.

If you have been having the diagnosis and you are four weeks from your diagnosis and you're not feeling back to being yourself.

We're going to recommend that you talk to your doctor and abruption and recommend a structured program where we can be able to assess your physical, emotional and cognitive needs to be able to see how do we get you better, how do we help you become an active part of your recovery in Covid?

We so many times are talking about vaccine and the vaccine is so important.

And being an active consumer is also really important.

But what's not to be forgotten is, is that every person is individual and every person is different.

And if you're having symptoms and you're not 100% like yourself, you should be consulting with your doctor and making sure that you are making informed choices together.

To be able to decide when it's the appropriate time for you to get the vaccine.

If it's the appropriate time for you now.

And research continues to be ongoing about the effects of the vaccine for patients who are long hauler.

Some are saying that it's making them better and that has you know, is that placebo effect meaning does it?

Is it just making you better because we think it's going to.

Or is it actually making us better?

But those are choices that are made together with your physician and that we in the world of science are going to continue to research and make sure that we are looking in the future to be able to make good choices and to help advise with good evidence based research.

Cam, as we come upon the one year anniversary of when this all began lockdown the anniversary I believe is March 16th, one year from, you know, all of that all of this has happened in a year.

I want to ask you, how has your life personally changed both as the director of rehabilitation but on a personal level as well?

Oh, my goodness.

That's such a loaded question, right?

So I think Alicia and I were talking about this prior to starting this conversation today.

Professionally, I have had the opportunity to work with some outstanding professionals and not that I don't have the opportunity to do that, but we really have seen people shine.

Our Dr our nurses, our therapy staff here in the hospital has just been first rate.

They have met the patients where they're and have done things that we never thought that we would do.

Our inpatient rehab team has seen over a hundred patients be able to return home to their families after successfully doing some really comprehensive rehab.

And my team that I work with in the outpatient division, you know, we have, you know, the word of the year pivot and we've pivoted more times than I can possibly tell you to the oint that we've turned around back and we've done all that well, managing our own families, managing our children at home and not being in school and with, you know, every day being a new adventure.

But we can say that we've done it together as a team and I am really proud of this team.

I think a lot of people would agree that pivot is definitely the word of the year for to describe the past year for sure.

Yes.

Kimberly Fritz from Lehigh Valley Health Network, thank you so much for all that great information today.

Thank you so much for having me.

And we continue this community update on coronavirus PBS39.

You can hear the rebroadcast on the radio tonight at 9 30 on 90 1 3 WLVT R. Now let's bring in our next guest.

Alicia Quinn is an executive with Discover Lehigh Valley, a group tasked with marketing this region and strengthening the economy.

Through tourism.

Alicia, again, welcome.

Thank you so much for being here.

My pleasure.

Thanks for having us.

2020 certainly was difficult for everyone, but especially for an organization built on tourism.

When much of us were on lockdown and in lockdown.

Let's start with some of the challenges Discover Lehigh Valley faced this past year.

What were some of those challenges that you faced during the pandemic Gamma Well, as a destination marketing organization.

It has been it's been our job, really our passion to connect people with experiences and stories, show people what it is to be an Lehigh Valley and to get out and enjoy all the great things we offer.

And a lot of that has been through attracting outside visitors, bringing people into the region.

And so last year we'd like to think of it more as an opportunity where we were able to pivot and really look at our locals and our residents and how to reconnect them or reconnect with and engage them.

You know, as we care so deeply about this community, we've always looked at the interconnectedness that there is a visit.

You know, all the different pieces that make someone's visit worth repeating.

And so this past year we stuck that a little bit further by looking at Lehigh Valley as you know, really that place that's a great place to live, to work and to do business in addition to visit.

So it's been more of an opportunity for us to shift our mindset and look at things from more of a local perspective and really encourage the locals safely discover their own backyards.

SHAW So many people pivoting, if you will, to outside and outside activities.

It was a banner year for outside activities going to parks and Recreation, Outdoor Recreation.

How did that help discover Lehigh Valley?

Certainly, you know, it was great to work with so many of the different organizations, the nonprofits like the Delaware and Lehigh National Heritage Squirter, the linked travel network.

These were some organizations that really put the forefront of the outdoors first, you know, trying to find trails that maybe were less crowded and maybe not as popular or the ones that everyone was going to.

We tried to uncover some new spaces to get out and explore.

A lot of these organizations were using their social media channels to keep things updated as to what sections of the trail had maybe some closures or needed some service.

And you know, beyond just the outdoor product this whole past year was really an opportunity for all of our partners and event organizers to really reinvent themselves and take a deep look at their operations.

You know, music as an example went from a hybrid model but largely had a virtual presence.

And you know, that was quite a big undertaking for them to re-envision what that might look like and to pull it off so successfully.

The iron payes brought you into the stadium in small pods and small pockets with your family and you could camp out under the stars.

And so a different way from what we're used to seeing a game and being in the stands rooting for the pigs.

But you've got different feeling that connectivity that, you know, brought you close to that experience.

The Bloomsbury Festival and Bethlehem, you know, they reinvented themselves as a market to go and, you know, really kind of brought you out to the Burnside plantation and you know, brought all these venders together but in a safe and managed manageable way.

I think the Lehigh Valley was one of the early adopters of time ticketing.

And you know, that was something that from ticket systems and online reservations.

But, you know, they really had to rethink and re-imagine that kind of paved the way for some of the others, then were able to adopt from the DaVinci Science Center, you know, being able to take their exhibit outdoor to keep people in open space and with time ticketing and, you know, small groups and with your family, you know, these organizations didn't do these things before.

They didn't have fees.

They weren't set up for these resources.

And in a very quick amount of time, following all the CDC and Department of Health regulations, they were able to pivot and shift their mindset and their operations to create opportunities for 2020 to really be successful.

Absolutely.

We saw a lot of reinvention, as you said, in 2020.

Now Discover Lehigh Valley is funded in part through the hotel tax revenues.

2020 was not the year for hotels.

So how did that impact your organization?

Financial.

It certainly was Birdsboro Senior.

We had to make some very hard decisions early on around that March 16th timeline.

We had to make some decisions to reduce our staff.

We had to and really cut all of our paid marketing spend being a destination marketing organization.

We have relied heavily on our marketing revenues and resources and we were able to had to make some pretty hefty cuts and rely heavily on creating our own content and organically trying to find that relative.

Enis to connect with the locals residents.

One of the things that we did was create an at home program where we wanted to tell the story of Lehigh Valley through coloring pages, crossword puzzles, word finds.

And that was something we launched early mid-March in 2020.

And so it was something that schools are still trying to figure out what they were going to be doing and what families they were going to be reading this time at home.

We hope that wasn't a new and a resource for them to, you know, let the kids do something crafty or something fun.

But yet have some connection to a story or to the history of the Lehigh Valley region and you know, as a hotel tax been so prominent for us, we've been able to we've been able to persevere with the commitment from the team.

We're a very small team, Discover Lehigh Valley, but everyone's come with their A-game and really just find to connect with our partners and help be an extra extension to their staff.

You know, a lot of our partners have also obviously went through so many challenges as this as the tourism history was also so widely impacted from Covid-19.

And so it gave us an opportunity to be an extension to their marketing and sales teams and be a resource that maybe they didn't look at us from before.

Sure.

Not only hotels but small businesses, restaurants, many of which make up the Lehigh Valley.

Their businesses have just been decimated by this pandemic.

Is there any idea have you do you have an idea of the kind of toll this has taken on those industries during the past year?

And do we see any bright spots in 2021 Gamma You know, I think for the restaurants in particular, there has obviously been, you know, unfortunate when we see some headlines of some of our favorites, some longtime staples having to close business.

It really is unfortunate.

We've always prided ourselves and our stories on local eating, local shopping, local supporting, local.

That is what I think defines for in an experience, you know, why travel if you're not getting to the authentic root of the story or of the destination Gamma And so for these restaurants, it is heartbreaking to see and hear some of these stories that some of them have really been able to, you know, think outside the box.

And again, here's reinvent and pivot.

It is everywhere.

You know, some don't even have takeout and maybe they have these very large cumbersome menus and they're able to, you know, streamline things a little bit more open up to take kerbside.

I mean, that was something that I don't think anyone really ever did or knew before.

And they made it fun.

They tried to find ways to connect with people and, you know, let them feel safe.

And you one last thing you have to worry about home cooking when you're managing all these new roles, the last thing you have to worry about is cooking to come get takeout kerbside.

So I think it's we've got a good outlook.

I think the future of being able to keep supporting local, keep getting people to our restaurants and our shops, our retail.

I think the forefront of retail this year has been online.

And when we look at all the Crossman ship and all the local makers, all the artisans from our Lehigh Valley community and residents over at the banana factory, these people now have the opportunity to reach a broader audience because they have to go online and they have to be able to connect digitally or before.

If you weren't maybe hopping into a festival, hopping into that venue or that gallery, you might not have known the they existed or they had such an impact.

So I think we're able to bring some of those to the forefront in, you know, again, for a Discover Lehigh Valley that remains a top priority for us is helping these partners tell their stories, helping share what is SAUX so strong and so great about Lehigh Valley?

Sure.

Alicia, we don't have a ton of time.

But my last question for you is just there's a lot optimism right now with vaccines coming out.

Nice weather on its way.

What does tourism look like Gamma Lehigh Valley for the rest of 2021 Gamma We are very hopeful.

We remain pretty strong through 2020 in spite of everything happening in terms of our hotel occupancy.

When you compare us against some of our competitors around the state of Pennsylvania.

I think just the old saying of location, location, location, when you are at sea auction to some of these urban destinations, we've got great open outdoor space.

We've got a lot of opportunity to really get out there and feel like you're not crowded around in other urban areas.

We are in great resource for somebody.

Different things that I think can come back on to the forefront as these partners and event organizers continue to find ways to hybrid, virtual and in-person.

Alicia, I imagine people can go on the Discover Lehigh Valley website for more information and ways to get out and enjoy the Lehigh Valley Alicia Quinn from Discover Lehigh Valley.

Thank you so much for joining us today.

Thank you so much for having.

We want to thank our guests for being with us today.

We want to thank you for joining community update on coronavirus will be here at 4pm each Monday, Wednesday and Friday on PBS39.

And on the radio those same nights at 9:30 on WLVT News.

We'll be back on Monday at 4:00 with a show that focuses on women's health during the% pandemic for PBS39 WLVT, I'm Brittany Sweeney Stacee.