Today Show Medical Expert Joseph Fair

[Hikergirl]

If he can say he has it, then anyone that was sick with COVID symptoms back in December and January can say they had it too. Yup, no tests needed, just a feeling.

 

[Lumpy1106]

Also curious how these tests are handling mutations?

Did you ask Hoda? She seems to know

 

[wilbret]

Did you ask Hoda? She seems to know

Next time I see her, I'll let you know. I'll be honest, I haven't watched any network morning shows since about 1994, when I last lived at home, because that was the only option in the mornings back then.

 

[cabanafrau]

I don't know about flu, but people who have had COVID19 are returning positive tests for weeks after symptoms subside. Some for over a month. So it seems unlikely that he waited so long to seek testing or treatment that he's no longer testing positive.

I agree an antibody test would be interesting, but that doesn't change that fact that verifying something *before* reporting it is a fundamental standard of journalism that was deliberately disregarded here for the sake of a "shocking" segment.

I didn't comment on the journalism aspect at all, although I do think it was very sketchily covered. I hesitate to say that it should not have been covered at all, but I would like to have seen one of the talking head medical experts pick up the baton and flesh out the story -- which is rather ironic since the subject of the story is apparently one of their talking head medical experts.

Does every covid positive patient continue to test positive for weeks? If not that is merely another aspect of this virus that complicates things, including but not limited to, if not, why not and does it have anything to do with a difference in strains of the virus? All of that is information that I'm sure is being looked at and will eventually be compiled together as the widely accepted known information about this virus. As a layperson I find it frustrating to feel so much of it is unknown. I can only imagine the frustration of the medical professionals desperately treating patients and continuously stumbling into more obstacles and unknowns time and again.

 

[Lumpy1106]

Next time I see her, I'll let you know. I'll be honest, I haven't watched any network morning shows since about 1994, when I last lived at home, because that was the only option in the mornings back then.

To be clear, not a comment directed at you - just the absurdity that she can, through a remote interview, state, "you clearly have it" - like she's some sort of expert.

More agregious to me is that our local (LA) NBC affiliate then cherry-picked bits from the interview and spliced together their own news story from that. Biased much?

 

[wenrob]

I was thinking along these lines as well.

Why test people at all if this expert is on television saying tests are 50% inaccurate?

Also weird was he stated the doctors asked him if he wanted to be intubated. He said "No". So they just upped his oxygen and he started to improve. As if the doctors didn't think to do that first? And he was surrounded by intubated patients. But, somehow, his increased oxygen got him out of critical condition.

Did the doctors ask everyone if they wanted to be intubated and they said yes? Is it actually a choice? A discussion? "Hey. Do you want to be intubated? No? Ok. Let's try the less invasive oxygen increase. Well, what do you know! It worked!"

It was just all so weird. I love Hoda. And was so disappointed she said that he clearly had Coronavirus by just looking at a man on oxygen. I never thought she would stoop for ratings.

Just for the record my dad was asked for permission before intubation. They had also previously asked my permission in the event that he couldn’t give his. I did not watch the interview, did they put him on a Cpap instead? Or just increased oxygen on the cannula? If the latter that does sound off.

The four negatives would indicate negative to me. As others have pointed out there are other illnesses out there. Part of the reason this virus scares me is that the symptoms are eerily similar to something I had 8-9 years ago. It was the sickest I’d ever been in my life and it’s not something I want to experience again.

 

[wilbret]

To be clear, not a comment directed at you - just the absurdity that she can, through a remote interview, state, "you clearly have it" - like she's some sort of expert.

More agregious to me is that our local (LA) NBC affiliate then cherry-picked bits from the interview and spliced together their own news story from that. Biased much?

The whole thing is just bananas. I can't stand the "if it bleeds, it leads" mentality of the media. 330 million people in this country, and they can't find positive stories?

I read the headlines every day "Coronavirus cases continue to grow, etc etc" What could their objective be, other than to scare people into reading?
How about: Good news! Increased testing shows that while widespread, the death rate from Covid-19 continues to decrease."

 

[Imzadi]

Also weird was he stated the doctors asked him if he wanted to be intubated. He said "No". So they just upped his oxygen and he started to improve. As if the doctors didn't think to do that first? And he was surrounded by intubated patients. But, somehow, his increased oxygen got him out of critical condition.

Did the doctors ask everyone if they wanted to be intubated and they said yes? Is it actually a choice? A discussion? "Hey. Do you want to be intubated? No? Ok. Let's try the less invasive oxygen increase. Well, what do you know! It worked!"

For the intubation - it is now used a lot less in COVID patients because it doesn't help as much as they thought - and it often does more harm than good. There are articles out there about that. If I got COVID, I would ask not to be intubated. Place me on my stomach and increase the O2 flow through the cannulas.

Actually, for intubations, I saw a local news report that they did ask patients if they want to be intubated. (FACTS: 80% of COVID-19 patients intubated do NOT recover. The longer one is intubated, the less likely one will recover.)

This new protocol was accidentally discovered by a doctor in one of the NYC hospitals during the apex. I forget the exact reason why they happened to flip a patient over on his stomach. They might have been waiting for a ventilator. The doctor then found out the patient was breathing easier as he upped his oxygen. He found it worked almost instantly better than intubating the patient! He ran and told other doctors on the COVID floor. They also tried it and it worked. This became the new protocol as they spread the news to other hospitals to try it. It has saved many, many more lives than being placed on a ventilator.

Because of this, NYC no longer needed as many ventilators as was feared, and we were able to get rid of our excess to other states who were still in short supply.

 

[Pink Partridge]

I just wonder why the doctor just didn't give him a c-pap or up his oxygen before asking if he wanted to go on a vent? Perhaps he just said it for ratings. Maybe to imply that he was oh so close to being one of those 80% that didn't recover from a vent.

Also, why would we put so much stock in widespread testing for Covid-19 if this expert was tested 4 times and claims they aren't accurate 50% of the time?

I wish someone would have asked him if it could possibly be another type of virus or illness.

 

[Imzadi]

Also, why would we put so much stock in widespread testing for Covid-19 if this expert was tested 4 times and claims they aren't accurate 50% of the time?

I don't know. But, I remember hearing early on that one had to be careful where one goes to get a COVID-19 test or antibody test. There are many private labs all over the country who say they can do them. But, their accuracy may be very off. I remember hearing that in the fine print of one lab, it says the results could be off by as much as 15%. 15%! One would think a hospital lab's test would have more accuracy. But, maybe this doctor is saying they are not any better?

I posted a story last night on the children's inflammatory syndrome thread. It was reported before we were told that 50% of the tests are inaccurate. It does seem to support that sometimes the hospital tests may be inaccurate and they may need to run COVID-19 tests a couple/few times. (Yes, I know, ONE incident does not make a study.)

A 14 yr old boy in a NY hospital was having many of the symptoms of pediatric inflammatory syndrome and his heart & organs were failing. He tested negative for COVID-19. His mother insisted that the doctors test him again, and that's when the second test uncovered the COVID-19. Thus, they were able to give him the right treatment. He's now recovering.​

 

[mom2rtk]

I don't know about flu, but people who have had COVID19 are returning positive tests for weeks after symptoms subside. Some for over a month. So it seems unlikely that he waited so long to seek testing or treatment that he's no longer testing positive.

I agree an antibody test would be interesting, but that doesn't change that fact that verifying something *before* reporting it is a fundamental standard of journalism that was deliberately disregarded here for the sake of a "shocking" segment.

My sister in law tested positive for 35 days when she had it.

 

[Pink Partridge]

A 14 yr old boy in a NY hospital was having many of the symptoms of pediatric inflammatory syndrome and his heart & organs were failing. He tested negative for COVID-19. His mother insisted that the doctors test him again, and that's when the second test uncovered the COVID-19. Thus, they were able to give him the right treatment. He's now recovering.​

GO MOM! Moms just know sometimes and I am glad she insisted on another test.

This all reminded me of Nick Cordero. He had two negative tests and tested positive on the third. But he was hospitalized for a while at that point and I wondered if he eventually contracted coronavirus in the hospital?

They originally said he had pneumonia, which his wife posted on Instagram that she had pneumonia in January. So it wasn't far fetched to believe Nick just had a case of pneumonia. This man is very, very ill. But the story is somewhat clouded. It's difficult to follow the wife's updates because she is really concerned with posting her bare belly and multiple angles of her in a bikini, while talking of the devastation Covid-19 had caused the family. The poor man lost his leg! And the wife is really looking to focus attention on her rockin' bod. It's like some people really can't help themselves when it comes to seeking attention from the misfortune of others.

I pray for this guy (Nick) every day. I hope he comes out of it.

 

[cvjw]

Probably the same reason Kathy griffin went on a tirade saying she had coronavirus and blaming the president for it when she actually had some sort of infection. For ratings and to make a political statement.

 

[Pink Partridge]

Probably the same reason Kathy griffin went on a tirade saying she had coronavirus and blaming the president for it when she actually had some sort of infection. For ratings and to make a political statement.

She claimed she couldn't get a test. But then others in her area posted they had no issues being tested. I wondered if she really had coronavirus?

I remember Heidi Klum posting pictures of herself being sick. But was never tested. I think she did apoloize.

Brooke Baldwin posted a picture of herself with her shirt lifted up, stretched across the back of her sofa. Pouting lips. Oh so sick. Who took this picture? And why didn't they tell her to stop spreading her Covid germs about the house?

This goes back to my whole issue with some people needing attention from their illness or someone else's illness. The attention seeking is an illness in itself, as far as I am concerned.

I wonder if this is the case with Joseph Fair?

 

[Imzadi]

GO MOM! Mom's just know sometimes and I am glad she insisted on another test.

This all reminded me of Nick Cordero. He had two negative tests and tested positive on the third. But he was hospitalized for a while at that point and I wondered if he eventually contracted coronavirus in the hospital?

They originally said he had pneumonia, which his wife posted that she had pneumonia on Instagram in January. It's difficult to follow the wife's updates because she is really concerned with posting her bare belly and multiple angles of her in a bikini, while talking of the devastation Covid-19 had caused the family. The poor man lost his leg! And the wife is really looking to focus attention on her rockin' bod. I pray for this guy (Nick) every day. I hope he comes out of it.

Did you hear? Yesterday, he finally woke up!!! He's very, very weak. Can only follow eye commands by the doctor to answer yes or no to questions. He has a looooong recovery ahead of him. But, he's finally awake.

He was in a coma and on a ventilator for 4 weeks. Back in the beginning was when there was barely any sort of tests. Maybe the majority of them were inaccurate?

I suspect Nick's wife was posting belly shots to make sure she was getting the numbers of her Twitter/Instagram followers up. There were probably some people who only follow her for those shots. (It's kind of a Kardashian trick.) She doesn't care, it makes it look like all her followers are there for Nick, and keeps his case in the news, which is what she needed to make sure his doctors don't give up on him. She still can't visit him.

 

[TheIncredibles!]

I read an article that states he tested negative 4 times and he says it's because he waited too long to get tested. I didn't watch the Today show so I don't know what he said the reason was there.
I think it is very disengenuous to go on a National TV show and state that you do have the virus when you have tested negative for it, not just once but multiple times. Also for a host to state "you clearly have it" when without an actual positive result that is not clear at all.
It really makes me questions one's motive for such an act.
How about do some interviews of real people- those on the front line who are fighting to keep confirmed COVID patients alive. or people who have recovered from it to tell their stories.
stop showcasing people who want to have it for your ratings or other reasons.

The only reason why he looked like he "clearly" had it was because he: was in a hospital bed, dressed in a gown and had oxygen. I personally thought he otherwise looked very much like a healthy person not like a "clearly" ill one. I just didn't understand the whole point of the interview. It was odd.

 

[Minnesota!]

Well, if nothing else, at least this all exposes to us ALL how corrupt the media can be. So focused on "first" vs. correct.

The insane amount of typos I see in articles written by well-respected journalists. Simply because of the frantic pace they are trying to keep...to be the first, the scariest, the most clickable. Doesn't matter if the substance of what they write is accurate.

Have not watched the news since...March.

I keep up with what my state is doing via the MDH website and with one news source a day who just posts the numbers. They had a typo today now, too, so I might put them on snooze for a bit..

Get off my lawn...

 

[Pink Partridge]

Did you hear? Yesterday, he finally woke up!!! He's very, very weak. Can only follow eye commands by the doctor to answer yes or no to questions. He has a looooong recovery ahead of him. But, he's finally awake.

OMG! I didn't know this! What is wrong with me? I am sitting here with tears coming down my face. I don't even know this guy. Lol!

I haven't checked the wife's page because it disgusts me. Like, just got back from the hospital to pick up his wedding ring. Now here are three pictures of me in a bikini.

So you have given me the best news! Thank you so much!

 

[3DisneyBuggs]

He was on a news article saying he caught coronavirus traveling on a packed airplane and he was infected from his eyes. He is an infectious disease specialist who traveled with a mask and gloves but no eye protection. He also had negatives tests but he has the virus?

 

[hopemax]

Keep in mind he was home ill a week before he was admitted to the hospital after his breathing became compromised and he realized his lungs were struggling.

This is probably the reason for the negative tests. The shedding occurs early with this virus. If he wasn't admitted and tested until after he was no longer contagious and has a low viral load, it wouldn't show up as positive, right? But the complications can last much longer. I didn't watch the interview, but did he have an antibodies test? X-rays of his lungs?