Dear Friends,

This link leads you to a 90 minute Q&A session with the top public health faculty at the UC Berkeley School of Public Health who are on the cutting edge of research on the corona virus as well as other vectors for infectious disease.

A half dozen or so faculty with deep expertise answer questions asked by the public regarding the most current and best thinking on this epidemic.  From pathophysiology to public policy, from discussion of medications and treatments, to developing a vaccine…. and a bit of commentary about transferring the virus to your pet…. this is a fascinating session.  

Consider sharing with your family:

https://news.berkeley.edu/2020/03/30/coronavirus-science-and-solutions/

Enjoy,

John

PS  Wouldn't it be cool if we had a school of public health in the Capitol Region?? 

(Reminder:  Have been asked to share that I have training in public health and in management).

Many public health experts believe that South Korea responded to the corona virus properly.  A colleague of mine, the Clinic and Public Health Laboratory Operations Administrator at the San Francisco Department of Public Health shared this ~ 8 minute youtube video of South Korea's successful strategy and lessons for the US….it is quite well done and uses terrific graphics to make clear points. 

Probably something you want to share with friends and family members who are interested in understanding a reasonable path forward.

Regards,

John

(Like the Clinic and Public Health Laboratory Operations Administrator, I am trained in public health and health services management).

By Eileen M. Samitz

In case others may not have heard this, CDC just announced Wednesday new recommendations to help protect essential workers. This has been so needed and likely helped Nugget to take action to provide face masks/ coverings for their employees.

Bravo to Nugget Market for recently implementing these CDC recommendations and I hope that the City and County circulate these new recommendations to have the employers provide these face masks/covering for their employees. Sadly, there have been some reports of essential workers elsewhere in the county succumbing from COVID-19 due to exposure to the public doing their jobs to serve us, without any type of facial mask or covering. So, this likely motivated CDC to finally come out with these needed recommendations. Even cloth facial coverings (since masks are better but the health care workers need them) are better than no facial covering to help deter exposure to the coronavirus.

Likewise, we as a community need to help by doing our part to wear a facial mask/covering to help prevent picking up or passing along the COVID-19 virus, since it is now known that many people can be carrying it, yet have not have symptoms.

Once again, thank you Nugget Market for taking action and setting the example of what our other local essential stores need to be doing for their employees.

Here is the AP article weblink with the CDC recommendations:

https://apnews.com/f2f80ae7f69376c21df6c8dc4cfb585b

New CDC guidance for essential workers during coronavirus outbreak

Dr. Robert Redfield, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention:

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has issued new guidelines for essential workers, such as those in the health care and food supply industries. The guidance is focused on when those workers can return to work after having been exposed to the new coronavirus.

— Do take your temperature before work.

— Do wear a face mask at all times.

— Do practice social distancing as work duties permit.

— Don't stay at work if you become sick

— Don't share headsets or objects used near face.

— Don't congregate in the break room or other crowded places.

The CDC also issued guidance for employers in essential industries.

— Do take employees' temperature and assess for symptoms prior to their starting work.

— Do increase the frequency of cleaning commonly touched surfaces.

— Do increase air exchange in the building.

On Tuesday evening when Dr. Ron Chapman, Yolo County Health Officer addressed the Davis City Council to provide an update for them on the Corona Virus situation in Yolo County, I went to the Yolo County Corona Virus Dashboard and looked up the number of CV tests that had been done to date in Yolo County. Here's the URL for the Dashboard:

https://www.yolocounty.org/health-human-services/adults/communicable-disease-investigation-and-control/novel-coronavirus-2019/dashboard-and-documents

It is a very informative dashboard! 

Back to the number tested in all of Yolo County:  That figure was 721 CV tests.

That means that 721/215,802 (2016) Yolo County residents had been tested.  That's less than 1%.  To be precise it is 1/3 of one percent.

Today I saw the figure of people tested in Yolo County has gone up to 885 people.  So, 885 out of 215,802 = 0.0041.  Or 40% of one percent of the population.  Still less than 1% of the Yolo County population has been tested.

Now I am NOT faulting the Health Department, they have been underfunded for years.  But we have presence from FOUR big health systems here in Yolo County:  Sutter, UC Davis Health System, Dignity, and Kaiser. Plus a small number of Community Health Centers.

Can't the City of Davis ask the Big Four to step up and help the Health Department with some significant level of testing?  Can't the City of Woodland City Council ask the same when Dr. Chapman presents to them next week?  

The Public Health Department can only do so much on its own (and I hope you paid your property taxes because that helps pay for County services!) so, can we have a little help from the big providers of care to assist with widespread CV testing throughout the county? 

And do it SOON so that the sooner we can get our arms around this problem the sooner we can respond properly and then eventually the sooner we can all get back to work/school/normal life?

Thank you for your consideration.

John Troidl 

(I am trained in both public health and in health services management).