Thurston County monitoring coronavirus spread, preparing for first confirmed case
There were no confirmed positive cases of COVID-19, the disease caused by a novel coronavirus, originating in Thurston County reported by state or local public health agencies as of The Olympian’s print deadline Tuesday afternoon.
Capacity and capability to test people for the disease is expanding, and “several tests” were pending as of Tuesday in Thurston County and across the state, Schelli Slaughter, Director of Thurston County Public Health and Social Services, said during the weekly situation update at a Board of County Commissioners meeting.
“It is imminent that we are going to see some cases in Thurston County, it’s just a matter of time,” County Manager Ramiro Chavez said at the meeting Tuesday morning. “As the testing kits are becoming more available and we test more people, it’s just bound to happen that we’re going to have cases in Thurston County.”
In recent days, confirmed cases have started to crop up nearby: As of the Department of Health’s count Tuesday, there were 16 confirmed cases in Pierce County, one in Jefferson, and two in Kitsap as the count in King County grew to 190 with 22 fatalities. Statewide cases were at 267 with 24 fatalities.
Thurston County Public Health will notify the public and members of the media immediately if and when there is a case confirmed here, local officials say.
The state is now planning to update its count at about 2 p.m. each day on its website (https://www.doh.wa.gov/emergencies/coronavirus), and Thurston County updates its Coronavirus web page frequently (https://www.thurstoncountywa.gov/phss/Pages/coronavirus.aspx).
Monitoring the situation, discussing social distancing
It’s been concerning to see the spread in other counties, Slaughter told The Olympian. She expects to see cases in Thurston County in the near future and is “confident” in the county’s ability to respond.
“We have been planning and preparing for this for over a month now,” she said. “So, as we get new guidance from the state and CDC, as everyone is learning more, we are adapting our response and planning efforts and responding to partners and stakeholders.”
County Manager Chavez said there’s language in place for an emergency declaration for county commissioners to consider, should it be warranted.
Thurston County Public Health is encouraging people to make choices for their own health, especially if they’re in a high-risk category, Slaughter said in an interview with The Olympian.
The vast majority of people who have contracted COVID-19 have recovered, she said. Populations most at-risk are people over age 60; people with chronic underlying health conditions such as diabetes, cancer, heart disease, and lung disease; people with compromised immune systems; and pregnant women.
Those populations should take extra precautions, Slaughter said, to avoid others who may be sick — they should limit their attendance and participation at events with large crowds, for example.
Symptoms of COVID-19 include fever, cough, and shortness of breath.
The county is “strongly encouraging” people who experience those symptoms to stay home, self-isolate, and call their health care provider, Slaughter said in her update to county commissioners. Public health officials do not recommend going to an urgent care or hospital unless you’re in urgent need of medical care, Slaughter said.
The best way to prevent the illness’s spread is to stay home if you feel sick, Slaughter said. She also repeated the ongoing recommendations to use good etiquette while coughing and sneezing and sanitize surfaces.
The virus is spread through contact between people within six feet of each other, especially through coughing and sneezing that expels respiratory droplets that land in the mouths or noses of people nearby. The CDC says it’s possible to catch COVID-19 by touching something that has the virus on it, and then touching your own face, “but this is not thought to be the main way the virus spreads.”
A quick comparison to Influenza
Tuesday, Commissioner Gary Edwards asked Slaughter to compare the illness to a typical flu season.
More people have been infected and more people have died from Influenza A and B, she said. In the latest weekly flu update from state DOH, there had been five laboratory-confirmed influenza deaths reported in Thurston County for the 2019-20 flu season.
But, Slaughter said, the fatality rate — which is shifting as cases and deaths are confirmed — for COVID-19 so far has been higher. And there’s not yet a vaccine or treatment known to be effective.
“One of the challenges is that we have 75 years of data on the flu, we have 75 days of data on COVID-19,” Emergency Services Director Hardin said at the meeting.
This story was originally published March 10, 2020 at 2:14 PM.
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