The following is a summary of the presentation during the Public Health briefings at this week’s Board of County Commissioners meeting made by Jefferson and Clallam County Public Health Officer Dr. Allison Berry. Also Willie Bence, Director, Director of Emergency Management, gave a report. The summary below was provided by and used with the permission of Jefferson County Government.
The following is a summary of the presentation during the Public Health briefings at this week’s Board of County Commissioners meeting made by Dr. Tom Locke. Willie Bence, Director, Director of Emergency Management, gave a report. The summary below was provided by and used with the permission of Jefferson County Government.
Deputy Health Officer Dr. Tom Locke this morning said COVID-19 cases continue to drop across the country and on the Olympic Peninsula. In Jefferson, there has been Omicron activity, but it is down 8% over the past two weeks, putting us at 618/100,000. ”This is a turning point in the pandemic,” Dr. Locke said, noting that now there is a transition from emergency containment mode to a more sustainable and less disruptive one. He noted WA State will be lifting its statewide masking mandate on March 21. Jefferson will lift its mandate at the same time. Health Officer Dr. Allison Berry earlier announced she will rescind the order requiring proof of vaccinations for restaurants and bars as of March 11. “We always will have some COVID-19 around at least for the next several years,” Dr. Locke admitted. “And it’ll occur in waves and really how it behaves will have a lot more to do with the virus than anything else. As we look to the future, not only are new variations or variants possible, they’re really to be expected. If we’ve learned anything from this last two waves, it’s to expect the unexpected.” Dr. Locke spoke about a new Omicron variant, BA2. Noting that it “is not a harmless subvariant,” health officials in Japan believe this strain is more transmissible than Omicron. Dr. Locke feels a wave of BA2 in this county will not occur.
Department of Emergency Management (DEM) Director Willie Bence said that the mass vax clinics that have been held for the past year have ended. If anyone is looking for a vaccine or other information, refer to the Jefferson County Public Health website or call DEM at 360-344-9791. He said most pharmacies have a supply of all of the vaccines. As for masks, Bence said K95 and KN95 masks have been pushed out the grocery stores, pharmacies, libraries, chambers, and all County food banks. Public Health also has them. For more information, call DEM.
Submit your Public Health questions to Dr. Allison Berry and Willie Bence by emailing contactus@kptz.org. Note: The weekly deadline for these to be submitted is on Fridays at noon, to be answered at the following Monday’s BOCC meeting.
The following is a summary of the presentation during the Public Health briefings at this week’s Board of County Commissioners meeting made by Jefferson and Clallam County Public Health Officer Dr. Allison Berry. Also Willie Bence, Director, Director of Emergency Management, gave a report.
Click here to read complete notes on the day’s briefings
Submit your Public Health questions to Dr. Allison Berry and to Willie Bence by emailing contactus@kptz.org. Note: The weekly deadline for these to be submitted is on Fridays at noon, to be answered at next Tuesday’s meeting (because February 21 is a holiday).
The following is a summary of the presentation during the Public Health briefings at this week’s Board of County Commissioners meeting made by Jefferson and Clallam County Public Health Officer Dr. Allison Berry. Also Kate Dean gave an informal report. The summary below was provided by and used with the permission of Jefferson County Government.
Click here to read complete notes on the day’s briefings
Submit your Public Health questions to Dr. Allison Berry and Willie Bence by emailing contactus@kptz.org. Note: The weekly deadline for these to be submitted is on Fridays at noon, to be answered at the following Monday’s BOCC meeting.
In this special edition of Through Science to Health, we revisit two graduates of Port Townsend High School who have chosen the medical profession for their careers. We spoke with both of them back in November of 2020.
– Jesse Maupin began his work as a Hospitalist at the University of Wisconsin Medical Hospital during the thick of the COVID-19 Pandemic two years ago. He’s now working as a Fellow in Geriatric Medicine at the University of Washington Hospital. This summer he joins the staff at UW Medical Center Northwest.
– Will Bringold is still a Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine Fellow at University of Wisconsin Hospital in Madison. In addition to his clinical duties, he takes care of people in the ICU with both COVID and non-COVID related severe illness. He’s in his final 5 months of training and will be starting his position at Tacoma General Hospital this summer.
Jesse and Will bring their frank and sincere perspectives on their experiences during the last few years as Residents and then Fellow during these difficult times.
The following is a summary of the presentation during the Public Health briefings at this week’s Board of County Commissioners meeting made by Jefferson and Clallam County Public Health Officer Dr. Allison Berry. The summary below was provided by and used with the permission of Jefferson County Government.
Dr. Berry there is still a critical shortage of COVID-19 testing. She said although distribution of test kits ordered from the federal government and the State Department of Health will be delayed by up to two weeks, this should not prevent anyone from following protocols. Here’s Dr. Berry’s directions on what to do:
– If you’re sick and you can’t get tested for COVID-19, the most important thing to do is stay home while you’re sick for five days from when your symptoms started, because it’s very possible that it’s COVID-19.
– If you can’t get tested, you can’t know for sure that it’s not COVID-19 in that you’re shedding that virus at work.
– If you can’t get tested, stay home for five days when you’re sick.
– If you’re exposed but you can’t get a test, stay home for five days if you are unboosted.
– If you’re boosted, you can continue to work. That’s kind of the simplest way I can break down the guidance around isolation and quarantine.
– If you test positive for COVID-19, the safest thing to do is to stay home for 10 days from when symptoms started. If you test negative, then you can go back as soon as your symptoms have resolved.
Submit your Public Health questions to Dr. Allison Berry by emailing contactus@kptz.org. Note: The weekly deadline for these to be submitted is on Fridays at noon, to be answered at the following Monday’s BOCC meeting.
Note: normally the BOCC meets 4 times a month and then skips the 5th week, so the next Public Health Briefing is scheduled for Monday, February 7.
The following is a summary of the presentation during the Public Health briefings at this week’s Board of County Commissioners meeting made by Jefferson and Clallam County Public Health Officer Dr. Allison Berry. The summary below was provided by and used with the permission of Jefferson County Government.
The following is a summary of the presentation during the Public Health briefings at this week’s Board of County Commissioners meeting made by Jefferson and Clallam County Public Health Officer Dr. Allison Berry. The summary below was provided by and used with the permission of Jefferson County Government.
County Health Officer Dr. Allison Berry this morning said the number of coronavirus cases is expected to peak toward the end of January which means the news reported over the next couple weeks will most certainly indicate a dramatic rise in cases. In Jefferson County, our current case count is 2,123 with a case rate of 1,460 per 100,000. That is the highest we have ever seen in our region with a 22% positivity. Only three people currently are hospitalized with COVID-19, and 22 deaths have been reported over the period of the pandemic. Clallam’s count is 7,890 with a case rate of 2,034 per 100,000.
She said although Jefferson is faring better than other areas on the peninsula, “the problem is the sheer number of people with COVID-19 who are needing to be seen in the ER or in the hospital. It is beyond straining the healthcare system, it’s nearly buckling under the pressure of all those patients who need medical care, particularly for emergency department medical care,” Dr. Berry said. “Jefferson isn’t experiencing that degree of emergency thanks to the the sheer number of folks in our community who are vaccinated, However, the challenge is when all of our neighboring health care systems are buckling under the pressure of COVID-19 it has a ripple effect on us because we can’t get our very sick out for care.”
Dr. Berry reports that nationwide, there are “incredibly high rates of transmission,” with approximately 800,000 cases diagnosed every day in the United States. Hospitalizations are still rising and, unfortunately, deaths are as well. Currently, there about 150,000 people hospitalized for COVID-19 in the United States.
Dr. Berry offers the following advice on what to do if you test positive using a home test: Stay Home.
(1) Isolate for 10 days – from when symptoms begin or 10 days from testing positive.
(2) Call Jefferson County Public Health for guidance: 360-385-9400.
(3) Tell the people that you’ve been around since you were infectious that they have been exposed (from two days before your symptoms begin through 10 days after).
(4) Check the Jefferson County Public Health Facebook page or website for more information.
(5) If you do not have a home test available, there is still drive-through testing at Jefferson Healthcare, and tests are available at the County Health Department while supplies last.
Here are Dr. Berry’s comments about young and healthy people, COVID-19, and risks: “I do hear from some folks who are young and healthy, who are even vaccinated. who say, ‘Hey, you know, I’m not going to die of COVID-19 so I’m just gonna live my life.’ And that’s true. You’re not Your probability of getting hospitalized or dying from COVID-19 if you’ve been vaccinated is low. But the big thing that we worry about is the risk that you could bring COVID-19 to someone else. And the biggest reason why people who are young and healthy should be thoughtful about transmitting COVID-19 is because we don’t want you to give it to someone else who could then get sick and die. So not enough to just measure your own personal risk. You want to measure the risk of everyone around you, in your family in your community who could get sick because of you.”
Submit your Public Health questions to Dr. Allison Berry and Willie Bence by emailing contactus@kptz.org. Note: The weekly deadline for these to be submitted is on Fridays at noon, to be answered at the following Monday’s BOCC meeting.
The following is a summary of the presentation during the Public Health briefings at this week’s Board of County Commissioners meeting made by Jefferson and Clallam County Public Health Officer Dr. Allison Berry. Also Willie Bence, Director, Director of Emergency Management, gave a report. The summary below was provided by and used with the permission of Jefferson County Government.
During the public health update this morning at the BOCC meeting, County Health Officer Dr. Allison Berry said COVID-19 has been rising dramatically though the nation and in the region. In Jefferson County, there is a significant rise in cases. Our current case rate is 416 per 100,000. As of today, we have 1,589 diagnosed cases. Dr Berry said it is reasonable to assume that if you are diagnosed with COVID-19 in Jefferson, it is most likely Omicron. That is the majority variant in our region now. “What we know about the Omicron variant is that it is incredibly infectious,” Dr. Berry said. “It’s very, very transmissible and is a little bit less severe than the Delta variant but not as mild as many people are making it out to be.” She explained that Omicron is 20% less severe than the Delta variant, and the Delta variant was 50% more severe than the original COVID-19 virus. If you are unvaccinated, the Omicron variant is actually more severe than the original COVID-19 virus. “It is not the cold, it is not the flu,” she said. Dr. Berry said for those who are vaccinated, Omicron has a low rate of severe disease. But if you are unvaccinated, it can still be incredibly severe and can lead to hospitalization and death given how how transmissible it is. She said we are very likely to see our hospital system being overwhelmed again. Jefferson Healthcare CEO Mike Glen, along with Tracie Harris, MD and Tina Toner MD, told Commissioners that the hospital is experiencing staff vulnerabilities. And moving patients from one hospital to the other has been critically impaired. The emergency department has increased patient load from 200 to 250 last month. And the Express Clinic normally sees 150 patients; currently it’s 225.
Submit your Public Health questions to Dr. Allison Berry and Willie Bence by emailing contactus@kptz.org. Note: The weekly deadline for these to be submitted is on Fridays at noon, to be answered at the following Monday’s BOCC meeting.
In this year-end edition of Through Science to Health, Dr. Joseph Mattern, Chief Medical Officer for Jefferson Health Care, joins KPTZ Host Chris Bricker for an informed discussion that helps us navigate the information overload surrounding COVID-19 and the Omicron variant. He emphasizes the Common Good when it comes to being mindful over the holidays, and gives us some optimistic encouragement as we roll responsibly through the next few months.
