Not a lot has changed in the Four Corners Health District when it comes to Covid-19.
“We’re still hovering at the same level,” Laura McDougall, Four Corners executive director, said during the Dec. 16 briefing.
Of the 163 new cases during the previous seven days, Seward County reported 81. The district is at 367 cases per 100,000 people, which is still in the red zone, McDougall said.
She said Four Corners hit a milestone Dec. 15 with 8,000 positive Covid-19 cases. She said the area is seeing the Delta variant but had not reported in Omicron cases yet.
“The hospitals are definitely busy,” she said.
Four Corners has been giving a lot of booster shots and doses of the vaccines, McDougall said. Officials are starting to see fully vaccinated children, as well.
Greg Butcher, Seward city administrator, said the city is seeing cases within its workforce. He encouraged people to get vaccinated if possible.
Mallory Gibreal of Memorial Health Care Systems in Seward said MHCS is testing by appointment.
Seward Memorial Hospital is allowing visitors for all patients except those who have tested positive for covid. Gibreal said MHCS has provided “a ton of antibody infusions” with great success.
MHCS has conducted more than 100 vaccination clinics and given more than 10,400 vaccinations.
She reminded people that the flu vaccine is also available and estimated a drop of 7% in people getting the flu vaccine.
Gibreal said the hospital was seeing more covid positive inpatients.
“Transfers are getting hard again,” she said. “Long-term patients are putting a higher care strain on rural hospitals.”
The next Four Corners briefing is scheduled for Thursday, Jan. 27, via Zoom.
