Whatcom residents urged to ‘remain diligent,’ as county’s COVID trends improving
Whatcom County has seen the number of new COVID-19 cases trend downward since the end of September, Whatcom County Health Department Director Erika Lautenbach said, and because of that, she implored residents “remain diligent.”
“It’s very encouraging and we’re very appreciative of the community’s effort to remain diligent by wearing masks, staying six feet apart and limiting family gatherings,” Lautenbach said during an online press briefing Wednesday, Oct. 14.
Since Sept. 30, Whatcom County has seen 119 positive coronavirus tests, according to data reported Tuesday, Oct. 13, by the Washington State Department of Health. That equates to approximately 9.15 new cases per day, according to data collected by The Bellingham Herald.
That’s actually an increase from the average of 8.43 cases per day during September, but is an improvement over the 9.8 cases per day the county saw during the second half of the month.
Though that news is encouraging, Lautenbach said the county has seen an increase in infections among its oldest residents, though she said the outbreak at the Highland Health and Rehabilitation Center, which she said has now spread to 38 residents and 18 staff members, was a big part of that change.
Lautenbach also cautioned that though the decrease is good, COVID is still active in the county.
“It can change very quickly,” she said. “We’ve seen declines followed by spikes before, so it’s important that everybody remains diligent.”
In addition to asking residents to continue wearing masks, maintaining social distance, practicing good hygiene and avoiding large gatherings, Lautenbach also asked residents to be extra cautious with Halloween approaching.
“We’ve seen spikes in cases after previous holidays,” Lautenbach said referring to increases seen shortly after Memorial Day, Fourth of July and Labor Day. “Because of the decline we’re seeing, we have concerns about a Halloween spike. We do encourage people to celebrate, but we encourage them to celebrate safely.”
She recommended Whatcom County’s Trip-or Treat, which will be held 3-7 p.m. Oct. 30, as a socially-distanced option put on by Whatcom County’s chambers of commerce. The event also includes a virtual costume contest.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention also has provided a list of lower and moderate risk Halloween activities for this year in an effort to help prevent the spread of coronavirus.
Additionally, Lautenbach reiterated the importance of residents getting vaccinated from the flu during the COVID pandemic.
Reducing the number of people who have to seek medical treatment for the flu will lessen the impact of Whatcom’s medical system, Lautenbach said, keeping it free to respond to new COVID cases.
The co-morbidity rate of COVID and the flu combined is also concerning, Lautenbach said, adding, “those two together create a very dangerous situation for people.”
COVID testing
Results from the TestDirectly or mobile drive-through test sites offered by Whatcom Unified Command and the health department show the importance of being testing if you believe you have contact with someone with COVID-19 and are showing symptoms, Lautenbach said at the briefing.
Of the 6,346 tests conducted at those sites, 1.5% (or 95) have returned positive results, according to data released by the health department during the briefing. Further breaking down those results:
▪ 12.8% of people tested who reported possible contact and showing symptoms (38 of 336) returned positive results.
▪ 6.5% of people tested who reported possible contact (62 of 1,012) returned positive results.
▪ 2.6% of people tested who reported symptoms (65 of 2,559) returned positive results.
▪ 0.7% of people tested who reported no symptoms (26 of 3,581) returned positive results.
▪ 0.5% of people tested who reported no contact (25 or 4,714) returned positive results.
▪ 0.1% of people tested who reported no contact and no symptoms (two of 2,686) returned positive results. These are most often people being tested for travel or in advance of medical procedures, Lautenbach said.
“What that shows is that if you believe you have contact and you are having symptoms, it’s important that you be tested,” Lautenbach said.
Whatcom County residents are also showing a wide range of COVID symptoms, from headache, to cough, to fever, Lautenbach said, with no particular symptoms being overly prevalent.
“It’s important not to self diagnose or rule things out if you have symptoms,” Lautenbach said. “We encourage all people who have symptoms to be tested.”
