COVID-19 Holmes County update
According to a March 10 release from the Holmes County General Health District, there have been no cases of COVID-19-19 reported in the county. There also have been no PUIs (person under investigation) or persons under supervision.
PUIs are persons who have been tested for COVID-19 and whose lab results are pending or who exhibited symptoms and traveled to China or had close contact with a person known to have COVID-19. Persons under supervision are travelers being monitored for symptoms.
The Holmes Health District is preparing through the following ways:
—Activated its Department Operations Center and Incident Command Structure to monitor the situation to coordinate public health response.
—Opened a Joint Information Center to coordinate messaging.
—Ensure local partners receive guidance published by federal and state partners.
—Publish health education messages to the community.
—Participate in weekly calls with the CDC and ODH.
—Provide bi-weekly situation reports to local stakeholders every Tuesday and Thursday.
The Health Commissioner serves on the state Public Health Preparedness Team (BTeam) and attended the Governor’s Summit on COVID-19 preparedness.
Should I buy a face mask for protection?
According to the Ohio Department of Health, “The use of face masks by people who are not sick is not recommended to protect against respiratory diseases. Face masks should be used by people who show symptoms of COVID-19 to help prevent spread of the disease and by health-care workers and others taking care of someone in a close setting. Instead we recommend taking preventative measures such as washing your hands thoroughly, covering your cough with a tissue, avoiding others who are sick and staying home when you are ill.”
For more information visit http://bit.ly/2IvfkRN.
Does soap work as well as hand sanitizer?
The answer is yes. Soap and water are actually the best way to get hands clean, according to the CDC. Here are reasons why hand sanitizer can fall short: It does not get rid of all types of germs (like norovirus), it may not work as well when your hands are visibly dirty and it might not remove harmful chemicals like pesticides.
For more information visit http://bit.ly/39DHR3A.
Can coronavirus live on packages?
According to the CDC, due to the poor survivability of coronaviruses on surfaces in the past, there is a low risk of the virus spreading from packages shipped over a period of days or weeks. Coronaviruses such as COVID-19 are generally thought to spread by respiratory droplets through close contact. The CDC said there is currently no evidence to support the transmission of COVID-19 associated with imported goods, and no cases in the U.S. are linked to imported goods. For more information visit http://bit.ly/2TC8fpa.
This is a rapidly evolving situation, and information is changing constantly. For general COVID-19 questions, call the Ohio Department of Health hotline at 1-833-427-5634. For questions specific to Holmes County, call or email the Holmes County Health Department at 330-674-5035 or covid19response@holmeshealth.org. Information is posted daily to the website at www.holmeshealth.org, as well as on its Facebook page.