Since the onset of COVID-19 in early 2020, infection rates have ebbed and owed, in uenced by several factors, including the emergence of new variants and changing local regulations. CASE NUMBERS SINCE THE BEGINNING
STAGES AND RESTRICTIONS: 1: LEASTRESTRICTIONS 2: 3: 4: 5:MOSTRESTRICTIONS
Travis County implemented a number system to alert residents about the severity of infection rates. From least to most, stages 1-5 represent the amount of restrictions imposed. Timeline of stages for Travis County
Williamson County implemented a color system pertaining to case rates and restrictions imposed. Green represents the least restrictions, and red represents the most. Timeline of stages forWilliamson County
STAGES AND RESTRICTIONS: G=GREEN
Y=YELLOW O=ORANGE R=RED
200
92% of ICU beds used (43% for COVID-19) Jan. 20, 2021:
July 26, 2020:
89% of ICU beds used (53% for COVID-19)
92%
43%
150
89%
53%
Travis County Williamson County
100
NOV. 19: R
NOV. 19: 4
FEB. 9: 4
NOV. 11: O
DEC. 19: 5
JUNE 14: 4
AUG. 25: 3
NOV. 4: Y
50
*WILLIAMSON COUNTY STOPPED USING A STAGE SYSTEM ON NOV. 15 AND CITED A POLICY SWITCH TO FOLLOW CENTERS FOR DISEASE CONTROL AND PREVENTION GUIDANCE RATHER THAN IMPLEMENT AN IN HOUSE SYSTEM.
MAY 14: 3
OCT. 26: G
0
SOURCES: AUSTIN PUBLIC HEALTH, WILLIAMSON COUNTY & CITIES HEALTH DISTRICT COMMUNITY IMPACT NEWSPAPER
2020
2021
“AS VACCINES START BECOMING READILYAVAILABLE FOR THE YOUNGER FRIENDS, THAT’S KINDOF THE LIGHT AT THE ENDOF THE TUNNEL FORUS.” ALISSA BORN, OWNER OF FIREFLY COMMUNITY SCHOOL IN PFLUGERVILLE
Organization, continue to warn about guarding against new COVID-19 variants, and hospital occupancy rates are still high in many parts of the U.S. In contending with those high occupancy rates, local health care entities have developed new ways of o er- ing care, said Dr. Ashis Barad, medical director of virtual care services for the Baylor Scott &White network. Barad said in the early days of the pandemic, Baylor Scott &White Health used telemed- icine out of necessity, but in the last two years the practice has evolved and is likely here to stay. “Before COVID[-19], video visits like doing a Zoom call with your doctor was just kind of a neat thing to do … and then March of 2020 comes, and the whole world has to be [on] video,” Barad said. A report from the CDC indicates in March 2020, the number of telehealth visits conducted nationwide was up 154% over the previous March. Barad said in the last two years, telemedicine has shown that while it is
not preferable for all types of care, it has some de nite advantages for health care providers. Among those advantages, Barad said, is the ability for patients and health care pro- fessionals to communicate more regularly rather than exclusively during yearly checkups. He said telemed- icine has proven great for patients with minor ailments such as earaches. “I think we’re getting smarter and better about what really works well in a virtual world and what still needs to be seen in person,” Barad said. Local government While COVID-19 has brought about some perma- nent advancements in the health care industry, those who work in local govern- ment and education are largely more focused on mov- ing away from requirements necessitatedby the pandemic. The city of P ugerville still requires visitors to city facili- ties to wear masks, but Mayor Victor Gonzales said he is hoping to do away with that policy some time this year. It
CONTINUED FROM 1
government and education have had to constantly adjust their policies and operations as case numbers shifted. According to leaders, many of the changes brought about by COVID-19 will likely fade with the pandemic, while others may be here to stay. Evolvinghealth care Sequoia Owens, proj- ect manager for BrightStar Care, a company that over- sees COVID-19 testing sites, said she tested positive for COVID-19 in late January, her rst positive test since the beginning of the pandemic in March 2020. Owens worked during the pandemic for nearly two years before contracting the virus, and she said her story is an example of why test- ing for COVID-19 will remain important, even as case rates begin to wane again following a massive upswing in Decem- ber and January. Major health care entities, including the Centers for Disease Control and Preven- tion and the World Health
is just a matter of making sure a return to normalcy is safe, he said. “Hopefully we won’t have another [COVID-19] variant coming across the radar here in the near future that will cause us to have to ramp up again,” Gonzales said. In Round Rock, Mayor Craig Morgan said the city has in many ways already moved away from many COVID-19 restrictions, leaving individ- uals and businesses to decide what safety measures to take. Morgan said one advantage the pandemic created was it allowed the city to focus on developing outdoor space like Yonders Point, an outdoor recreation area at Old Settlers Park that opened in June. “I think what we’ve learned is people really enjoy the out- doors, and [the pandemic] has driven more people to the outdoors,” Morgan said. Morgan added the city has
also encouraged outdoor rec- reation through its Music on Main program and the addi- tion of expanded pedestrian spaces downtown. Local education o cials also say they are looking forward to an end to the pandemic and its safety requirements but have also taken notice of some bene - cial protocols. At P ugerville ISD, Superin- tendent Doug Killian said he hopes some health and safety practices will continue after the pandemic has passed. “What I’ve seen now is parents are more apt to keep a kid home when they don’t feel well, and that’s helped us quite a bit, and I think it would go on helping us if that became a regular practice going forward,” Killian said. However, while telemed- icine had a mainly positive impact on the health care eld, Killian said the e ect of
26
COMMUNITY IMPACT NEWSPAPER • COMMUNITYIMPACT.COM
Powered by FlippingBook