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Health director urges continued precautions in light of 48% COVID increase
McCOOK, Neb. -- Southwest Nebraska has seen a 48% increase or 74 more cases of COVID-19 since adopting more open Phase 4 Directed Health Measures Aug. 1, according to the Southwest Nebraska Public Health Department.
The movement from Phase 3 to Phase 4 does not change an individual’s actions to stay healthy, said Myra Stoney, SWNPHD health director.
Communities also need to work with their residents to keep the COVID virus at a minimum, she said.
“We know the virus is in Southwest Nebraska. We are seeing an increase in numbers as testing options become more available,” Stoney said.
Of the 74 cases from Aug. 1-31, 66% are direct contact with another person with COVID19, 18% are community spread (unknown origin); 16% are spread from travel, usually to funerals, weddings and other family events.
The health department has also seen several clusters of cases in the last month, which means they are traced back to a common source.
The transition from Phase 3 to Phase 4 of the DHMs does not change an individual’s personal responsibility for reducing virus transmission, Stoney said.
“Practicing safety measures such as maintaining good social distancing, wearing a face covering when appropriate, washing hands frequently and staying home when you are sick is everyone’s responsibility to help stop the spread of COVID-19 and to protect your friends, family, and neighbors.”
“Communities need to get back to normal, but should consider activities within their community and how to safely host those activities,” she said.
The health department has an event planning guide located on the website. It walks the event planner through several phases of the event to assure a safer event.
The health department has seen 16 new cases this week. Details by county, age, sex etc., can be found on the website at www.swhealth.ne.gov on the COVID19 page under general info and maps. This information is updated several times per week.
The COVID-19 Community Risk Dial for the week of Aug. 31 is yellow. The dial for southwest Nebraska will be updated every Monday using local data to determine the risk. The main factors that will be considered for the community risk dial include the following:
The increase or decrease in the number of COVID-19 cases
The increase or decrease in the percent of tests that are positive
The availability of testing
The ability of the Health Department to conduct investigations and contact tracing
The number of people hospitalized from COVID-19
The capacity of the local health care system
The availability of personal protective equipment and critical medical equipment
Guidance documents can be found on the COVID-19 Information pages of dhhs.ne.gov or on SWNPHD’s website www.swhealth.ne.gov. You can also follow SWNPHD on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. SWNPHD serves Chase, Dundy, Frontier, Furnas, Hayes, Hitchcock, Keith, Perkins, and Red Willow counties. SWNPHD is located at 404 West 10th St (1 block north of Arby’s) in McCook.