Summit County Well being Division releases coronavirus after-action report
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It’s been greater than seven months since Summit County well being officers rescinded the Covid emergency declaration issued in March 2020. Now they’re taking what they’ve discovered all through the pandemic to enhance public well being responses sooner or later.
The Summit County Well being Division introduced a coronavirus after-action report detailing the county’s response all through the pandemic throughout Monday’s Board of Well being assembly. The evaluation evaluates the Well being Division’s efforts and critiques the actions taken with the objective of figuring out successes and gaps in service. It was additionally introduced to the Summit County Council on Wednesday.
The report makes use of information spanning from January 2020 by Could 2022. There have been practically 14,200 confirmed coronavirus instances in Summit County throughout that point amongst a inhabitants of 42,647. There have been a complete of 332 hospitalizations, with 50 individuals visiting the intensive care unit. Twenty-six individuals died.
Instruments, akin to vaccinations, have helped preserve COVID-19 case counts low in current months, though the virus remains to be energetic locally. Summit County’s vaccination price is round 90%.
The Well being Division in contrast its response to the Facilities for Illness Management and Prevention’s six domains of preparedness, together with neighborhood resilience, incident and knowledge administration, countermeasures and mitigation, surge administration and biosurveillance.
Well being officers highlighted how sure actions taken, together with strengthening neighborhood partnerships, issuing public well being orders and sending emergency alerts, opening mass vaccination clinics and creating an epidemiologist place inside the Well being Division, met CDC requirements. Different areas — akin to the necessity for a medical reserve corps operations and volunteer plan, communication with weak populations, formal surge administration coaching with medical suppliers and scientific workers burnout — wanted to be addressed
The Well being Division is planning to include the findings from the after-action report into growing an improved emergency response and preparedness methods, insurance policies, coaching and extra. A number of really useful adjustments will probably be instituted over time.
Well being officers plan to finish a jurisdictional threat evaluation to assist their public well being emergency response and advocate for the creation of a countywide medical reserve corps. Medical workers on the well being division may even work with native faculty districts, particularly nurses, and longterm care amenities for planning functions. County officers and companions are additionally anticipated to take part in quite a few preparedness and response coaching workouts.
Board of Well being members on Monday praised the Well being Division for its response all through the coronavirus pandemic. Whereas a lot of the state turned away from well being and security restrictions, akin to masks mandates, nearly all of Summit County embraced the steps taken to guard the well being of most people in addition to themselves.
COVID-19 transmission in Summit County stays low. The Well being Division reported 31 confirmed instances final week in comparison with 34 this week. Case counts round this time final yr had been within the triple digits.
Up to date bivalent COVID-19 boosters for defense towards the omicron-specific variants are nonetheless obtainable at native pharmacies and the Well being Division. For extra data, name 435-336-3234.
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