HomeMy WebLinkAbout04.12.20 Email from Shari McCracken - COVID-19 Updat - Public Health Activities
From:McCracken, Shari
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Subject:COVID-19 Updat - Public Health Activities
Date:Sunday, April 12, 2020 10:36:29 AM
Attachments:pastedImage.png
Dear colleagues,
Good morning and Happy Easter. I hope you are finding some time to get out and enjoy the
nice weather, while maintaining physical distancing and practicing good hygiene. Though this
Easter will most likely be different than past Easters, may you still find a way to celebrate.
I wanted to share some good news regarding local testing for COVID-19, as well as a couple of
other updates on Public Health activities.
Over 500 COVID-19 tests have been performed through Butte County in both public and
commercial labs, with some lab samples now being driven daily to the State’s Public Health
Lab in Richmond. With the receipt of testing equipment locally, though, the need to transport
out of the County should decrease.
The Public Health Department received a $250,000 grant from the North Valley
Community Foundation a few weeks ago that enabled the Department to purchase the
necessary equipment to do testing in our local Public Health Lab. We just received the
final pieces of equipment so installation and certification by the State is in process. Once
the Lab and equipment are certified, we will have in-County testing, which will provide a
much faster turnaround on results. The goal is to start local testing with the new
equipment by the first of May, if equipment testing, training, and certification go well.
Please keep in mind that the State determines the priorities for who gets tested, and
not the local health care industry or Public Health.
Additional testing will also be available through two other types of testing equipment
recently received, called the Abbot Now ID machines. One Abbot machine will go to a
local hospital and one will remain in the Public Health Lab. Testing through these
machines will be prioritized for patients in hospitals.
Butte County Public Health has also been approved to participate in the State’s sentinel
surveillance program, which will expand the ability to run up to 50 additional tests per
week. The testing will take place in two outpatient settings, though those sites are still
being determined so there is no time estimate on when this will go live. The objective
of this program is to help determine the amount of community spread of COVID-19.
Therefore, these tests will be for individuals who have symptoms but are not ill enough
to be hospitalized and do not necessarily meet the criteria of direct contact with a
known case.
The federal government set up a Field Medical Station (FMS) at the Enloe Rehabilitation
Hospital. The FMS provides 125 beds and 72 hours of supplies to meet surge capacity. Public
Health will be responsible for ordering on-going supplies, and Enloe Medical Center will
provide staff, if the FMS is needed.
Public Health has created a COVID-19 dashboard that can be found at:
www.buttecounty.net/publichealth
Scroll down the Public Health web page to find this image. Once you are in the dashboard,
please note that there are multiple pages to the graphic so hit the right arrow to see all pages.
Take care,
Shari
Shari McCracken
Chief Administrative Officer