Our local COVID-19 updates represent the coordinated effort of the agencies that make up the DCCRT
JOINT INFORMATION CENTER PRESS RELEASE - FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – December 17, 2020
DOUGLAS COUNTY COVID-19 RESPONSE TEAM - DAILY UPDATE
(Douglas County, Ore.) Douglas County COVID-19 Test Results: As of 12:00 pm Today, Thursday, December 17, 2020, there are SEVENTEEN (17) people with new positive test results to report since our noon case update yesterday. The total number of cases (people with positive test results and presumptive) in Douglas County is now at 1,244*. Currently, there are THIRTEEN (13) Douglas County COVID-19 patients that are being hospitalized, twelve locally, and one out-of-the-area. Our Douglas County COVID-19 Response Team, under the direction of the Douglas County Board of Commissioners, who administer our local public health and oversee the work by Dr. Bob Dannenhoffer, our Douglas County Public Health Officer and Douglas Public Health Network, continue to devote all resources available to our local COVID response.
Super Spreader Events and Actions
We want to provide some insight as to how high risk COVID super-spreader events and actions are so very dangerous. A “super spreader event or action,” is one where just one single infection can spur a large local outbreak. We have talked ad nauseam about how large gatherings such as weddings, church services, Halloween parties, birthday celebrations, poker game nights and holiday dinners have turned into super spreader COVID events in our communities. We know most of our residents, despite pandemic fatigue have been amazing, and are following the widely proven, simple and effective recommendations for virus spread prevention in our county. Thank you for being our champions! Our goal is to continue to educate and provide information about the current status of this pandemic in our county. That is why it is so very important to talk about the unknowing and unintentional choices of a few that are choosing to attend or host super spreader high risk events that have resulted in a huge spike in our positive COVID case numbers, a large number of residents having to stay in isolation or quarantine, an increase in hospitalizations, and 36 deaths.
In addition to the super spreader events, we also have super spreader actions. This is the one of the most concerning issues we are facing right now. The top of the list for super spreader actions are people who are unwittingly and unconsciously choosing to go to work when they are sick. Recently, it was conveyed to us that the root cause of two separate local COVID outbreaks were likely the result of a single person knowingly going to work when they were sick, and then testing positive for the COVID-19 virus. One of those outbreaks has resulted in seven deaths, and the other recent outbreak has placed over 300 people/families in quarantine. We can’t even imagine the tremendous remorse these people are feeling right now, and we sympathize with them. Our updates are intended to encourage our residents to do the right thing, and help us protect all of our residents. That is why we will continue to encourage you to protect yourself and others from contracting and spreading COVID, by staying home if you are sick and by following the guidelines listed in our updates. Please help us all stay safe.
|
Date |
Sunday, December 13, 2020 |
Monday, December 14, 2020 |
Tuesday, December 15, 2020 |
Wednesday, December 16, 2020 |
Today, Thursday, December 17, 2020 |
|
Total COVID-19 Cases |
1,201 |
1,208 |
1,222 |
1,227 |
1,244 |
|
People with Positive PCR or Antigen Test Results |
1,124 |
1,131 |
1,145 |
1,150 |
1,167 |
|
Presumptive |
77 |
77 |
77 |
77 |
77 |
|
Total Currently Hospitalized |
11 |
14 |
15 |
13 |
13 |
|
Total Currently in Isolation |
205 |
200 |
171 |
159 |
157 |
|
Total COVID-19 Related Deaths |
30 |
30 |
34 |
36 |
36 |
*Our daily update includes the total number of cases in Douglas County, which combines people with positive test results and presumptives. We provide a breakout of the people with positive test results and presumptives in the chart above. Please note there will be times when a presumptive will move to a positive test result, and our total case number will not change because the case has already been counted, instead you will see an adjustment to our breakout numbers for positive test results and presumptives. Also, note that OHA has chosen to no longer provide or report negative test results, so we will no longer be reporting this data in our daily update. Please contact the Oregon Health Authority for more information.
Local Cases Being Supported in Isolation and Quarantine
Currently, DPHN is supporting 157 cases in isolation, as well as another 574 contacts in quarantine in Douglas County. Isolation is recommended for confirmed and presumptive cases, quarantine is recommended for contacts of confirmed or presumptive cases. Currently, staff is supporting an astounding 731 total contacts in isolation or quarantine. This number represents a snapshot of the significant amount of work being done by our county and Douglas Public Health Network to help control the spread of COVID-19.
Weekly COVID Series: Week 3, Day 4
Celebrate the Holidays Safely During COVID-19
We are almost through this week and here is day four with our tips and ideas to safely celebrate your holidays and keep you and your family and friends safe from COVID this holiday season. Tip # 4: Take the Time to Create Special Memories this Year. Since this year many of you will be staying home, working from home and celebrating with just your immediate family, instead of traveling and attending holiday gatherings, we wanted to offer some ideas to help make this year special, despite COVID. Think about making this holiday season a time of collecting and making memories with your family. Get everyone involved. Help your kids to draw, craft or make holiday cards, postcards or decorations to send, mail to relatives or care homes or keep in your Christmas décor box. Get out your favorite cookbook or get Grandma on the phone and schedule a family cookie baking marathon. Give to others this holiday season and help out a family that is in need with a food box or gifts. Do what you can to help our comminutes this season. Check out the blog by Girl Seeks Joy for ‘28 Ways to Make Sweet Memories This Holiday Season’. And, if the last nine months have not allowed you to give your home a check-up or cleaning, think about taking some time to organize and clean your home, tackle that scary hall closet and perhaps catch up on some long overdue projects. You can donate clothing and housewares too. Just make a list and get it done, so you can start 2021 off with a clean slate. Yes, holiday celebrations will need to look different this year to prevent the spread of COVID-19. Do not chance it, please avoid activities that are higher risk for virus spread this holiday season.
Christmas is 8 Days Away! Remember You are the KEY to COVID Safe Holidays!
It is no secret that the key to stopping the continued spread of the coronavirus is, YOU, our residents, our families, our communities and our businesses. Please celebrate safely this holiday season. Prevention is the best medicine, and not just to help stop the spread of COVID, but for your overall health and wellbeing as well. If each and every individual in our county would make a real concerted effort to implement prevention measures into their daily routine, we could see a huge decrease in our COVID case numbers. We need each and everyone one of our residents to take the necessary steps to minimize the spread of germs and contagions. You can help by staying home this holiday season, keeping gatherings to just your household, maintaining healthier eating habits; incorporate exercise and cleaning routines; being cautious and keeping distance from others; making modifications to how you socialize with others; choosing no contact deliveries and services; and staying home if you are sick. The suggestions we make and the guidelines presented by public health are not just for your health and safety, but for the health and safety of everyone, including our kids, our grandparents, our coworkers, our first responders, our teachers and our businesses. We know we sound like a broken record, but our primary focus is to do everything we can to protect the health, safety and wellbeing of our residents. Dr. Bob Dannenhoffer, Douglas County Public Health Official, urges residents to stay home when they are sick to help protect others from getting sick and spreading disease. This means not only staying home from work and school, but also staying home from all other activities and social events. Please, if you are sick, even if you just have a runny nose or stuffy head, do not got to work or attend gatherings, church, parties, events, weddings, game nights, prayer groups, or go work out at the gym and expose others to your illness.
Help STOP the Spread of COVID
- Make a habit of washing and sanitizing your hands, regularly. That means washing after you eat, if you touch new surfaces, go to the bathroom, open a door, go to the store, go to the post office or after a meeting. Also try and avoid touching your face as much as possible.
- Please wear a mask when you are around others not from your household. Not just for your protection, but for the protection of others.
- Stay at least six feet apart from anyone that is not from your immediate household. This means paying attention to the distance stickers at the store, the bank, at restaurants and at businesses. Please be respectful, kind and polite, by giving people ample space.
- Stay home from work, school and play if you are sick. This includes not running errands or going shopping or inviting visitors to your home. If you need help, reach out to friends, family or utilize an app or businesses that offer no contact deliveries or services.
- Minimize travel, especially out of the state and limit visitors to your home.
- Minimize attending social gatherings or going places where there are large groups of people.
The DCCRT team, under the direction of the Douglas County Board of Commissioners, along with Dr. Bob Dannenhoffer, our Douglas County Public Health Officer and Douglas Public Health Network encourage residents to make prevention measures a priority in their everyday routines.
Getting Tested & Testing Clinics
The next drive-through testing clinic will be Friday, December 18, 2020, in Roseburg. As a reminder, if you are having symptoms of COVID-19 including cough, fever, shortness of breath, muscle aches and pains, diarrhea, sore throat or decreased sense of smell and taste, talk to your health care provider about being tested for COVID-19. Patients without a Primary Care Provider that are looking for a COVID-19 test should contact the Sutherlin Aviva Health Clinic at (541) 459-3788. The first drive-through testing site was piloted in the county on March 17, 2020. Since then, there have been 2,123 tests performed in local drive-through clinics, while additional testing continues in hospitals, urgent cares and clinics. The drive-through clinics are led by DPHN, in conjunction with partner agencies including; Douglas County COVID-19 Response Team, Douglas County Board of Commissioners, Douglas County Sheriff’s Office, Douglas County Public Works, local volunteers and local health professionals.
Oregon COVID-19 Case Update
Oregon Health Authority (OHA) reports new cases once a day on their website at www.healthoregon.org/coronavirus. OHA also releases a daily situation status report and a weekly report that details the overall picture of the COVID-19 outbreak within our state. The daily report details positive and presumptive cases, as well as deaths by county and statewide, while the weekly report is more in depth and includes statistical data related the severity of cases by age, gender, zip codes, ethnicity, as well as information on workplace and senior care facility outbreaks in Oregon. Find additional information on the state or Federal COVID-19 response go to Oregon Health Authority, Centers for Disease Control, and 211Info.
Oregon COVID-19 Presumptive
OHA expanded their reporting for COVID-19 case management to now include presumptive COVID-19 cases in their total case number. DPHN is reporting the number of people with new positive test results and any new presumptives and uses the OHA’s definition of presumptive as having had close contact with a known, confirmed COVID-19 case, showing symptoms and not yet having a positive nasal swab/PCR or antigen test for COVID-19. Testing continues, as DPHN has been holding 2-3 clinics a week and hospitals, urgent cares and clinics continue to test. DPHN continues their epidemiologic investigations, identifying individuals who may have had close contact with individuals that have tested positive for COVID-19, advising and supporting quarantine and isolation.
OHA Reporting and Definition for Recovered
As per the Oregon Health Authority COVID-19 Investigative Guidelines, the number of recovered cases is no longer being assessed or reported by OHA. Up until May 1st, 2020 recovery from COVID-19 was defined as being afebrile (not feverish), without the use of antipyretics (medicine to reduce a fever), and having resolution of cough, shortness of breath and diarrhea for at least 72 hours. As more was learned about symptoms, recovery and contagious period, the definition of recovered changed. Beginning May 1st, OHA stopped reporting recovered cases while also separating recovery from contagious or isolation period. Many cases were no longer contagious, as they were outside of the contagious period, but still having lingering symptoms. To be consistent with OHA and to adapt as we learn more about this new virus, we removed the column in our chart listing recovered cases. At that point, we added the number of those in isolation, roughly indicating active or infectious cases of COVID-19 in Douglas County.
Facebook Live with Dr. Bob
Please join us Friday, December 18, 2020 at 4:00 pm for the next Facebook Live event with Dr. Bob. hosted by DPHN on the DPHN Facebook page. Dr. Bob Dannenhoffer, our Douglas County Public Health Officer will continue their normal schedule of Facebook “Live Q&A Updates” next week with both his Tuesday night at 6:00 pm and Friday night at 4:00 pm on the DPHN Facebook page. Residents are still able to submit their COVID-19 questions to Dr. Bob during the live shows, but you can also email your questions to: Facebookquestions@douglaspublichealthnetwork.org. Dr. Bob and the DPHN team will do their best to respond to as many questions as they can during their weekly updates.
|
KEEP UP AND ACCESS LOCAL COVID-19 INFORMATION |
Stay Informed with Accurate Local Information
Stay up to date on COVID-19 in Douglas County on the Douglas County Government website or the DPHN website. Your Douglas County Board of Commissioners, Douglas County Public Health Officer, Dr. Robert Dannenhoffer, DPHN and the Douglas County COVID-19 Response Team (DCCRT) have been working hard to cooperatively provide accurate and timely information to Douglas County residents since March 8, 2020. Our local COVID-19 updates represent the coordinated effort of the agencies that make up the DCCRT.
Douglas County Resource/COVID-19 Hotline: (541) 464-6550
|
ACCESS TO STATE COVID-19 INFORMATION/RESOURCES |
Your Douglas County Board of Commissioners and Douglas Public Health Network continue to offer a local resource and referral service via our COVID-19 hotline for Douglas County residents. The Hotline helps residents get answers to questions, provides up-to-date COVID information and helps residents get connected to resources and services related to COVID-19. The Resource/COVID-19 Hotline is (541) 464-6550. It is staffed from 8:00 am to 5:00 pm, 7 days a week until further notice.
To find additional information on State or Federal COVID-19 response go to Oregon Health Authority, Centers for Disease Control, and 211Info. Questions about Governor’s New Statewide Metrics and Rules? If you have questions or need more information on statewide mandates, guidelines or rules, go to the Governor’s COVID-19 website at https://govstatus.egov.com/or-covid-19/ or call the Business Oregon's Navigator Hotline at (833) 604-0880. For information on COVID-19 in other counties and around Oregon, call 211 or visit 211info.
Who Do You Contact to Report Compliance Issues with the Governor’s Statewide Rules? Please do not call 911, Douglas County Sheriff’s Office or Douglas County Offices to report compliance issues with the Governor’s orders. The Governor has directed the State offices for Oregon Occupational Safety and Health (OSHA) and the Oregon Liquor Control Commission (OLCC) to be the enforcement agencies responsible for ensuring restaurants, bars, and other businesses comply with COVID-related rules. For more information or to report compliance issues contact:
OSHA: (800) 922-2689 or OSHA website or OLCC (503) 872-5000 or OLCC website
###
Contact Tamara Howell, Public Information Officer, Douglas County COVID-19 Response Team, (541) 670-2804 cell (541) 957-4896 tjhowell@co.douglas.or.us
Contact Vanessa Becker, Public Information Officer, Douglas Public Health Network, (541) 817-6552 cell (541) 440-3571 vanessa@douglaspublichealthnetwork.org