NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — As the delta variant continues to spread throughout the state, Nashville's top doctors and medical professionals took part in a town hall that aired on all four Nashville TV stations called Controlling COVID: Ask the Experts.
From vaccines and alternative treatments, to misinformation and even decisions from elected officials - nothing was off the table.
Watch 'Controlling COVID: Ask the Experts' in its entirety below:
The discussion from the Grand Ole Opry stage brought in some new voices from the fight against COVID-19, including what it’s like inside Nashville’s ICUs right now.
"They are all on ventilators, most of them are prone, which means we flip them onto their bellies to give their lungs a better chance to expand," said Kathryn Sherman, a COVID-19 ICU nurse.
Sherman pulled no punches describing her frustrations with some politicians in the state, where mask mandates are not in place, and districts as a whole have been barred from returning to online learning as COVID cases among kids surge.
"That’s been something very frustrating to watch, as someone who has been knee-deep in COVID every day," Sherman said. "Politicians and political actors who have no medical, no science background, making either statements or rulings about COVID when they clearly do not have the knowledge to do so."
The medical experts pushed the importance of getting vaccinated to protect against the delta variant, giving advice on how to talk to friends or loved ones who still have chosen not to.
"I think that’s really important to make sure they know that you do care and to not be so judgmental," said Dr. Alex Jahangir, the chair of the Metro Public Health Board. "All of us have judgments, all of us judge if we are not careful. And I think we just need to recognize that, and I think we need to put that aside and figure out why, and hope that person gets to what I think is the right decision and get a vaccine and provide the information they need."
You can watch the Town Hall in its entirety on NC5+ this weekend. It will re-air at 8 p.m. on Friday and Saturday nights.
