As yet another unprecedented year draws to a close, I’m reminded of how far we’ve come and all that we’ve accomplished in 2022. This year has not been without its challenges — including ambulance patient offload delays, workforce shortages, and the most recent tripledemic of flu, respiratory syncytial virus, and COVID-19 — which makes it all the more important to take time this holiday season to celebrate and reflect on what has been done:
My sincere thanks to those who were able to attend the HASD&IC Annual Meeting on Nov. 17. I know your time is valuable, especially given the current headwinds that many of your hospitals are facing. After two years of being apart, it was great to return to an in-person meeting and hear about the issues important to hospitals and our members.
Gratitude (noun): the quality of being thankful; readiness to show appreciation for and to return kindness.
Next week, many of you will gather to celebrate Thanksgiving. And although we all have our own ways in which we will observe the day, gratitude will no doubt be at the heart of the celebrations.
If the public health officials’ predictions are true, we’re in for a “tripledemic” of viruses — influenza, respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), and COVID-19 this winter.
In just a few weeks, we’ll gather at the Rancho Bernardo Inn for HASD&IC’s first in-person Annual Meeting in more than two years. We’ll replace the Zoom “squares” with name badges and get a chance to network and reconnect with our colleagues and community partners.
In San Diego County, where the February 2022 Point-in-Time Count found no less than 8,427 people experiencing homelessness — a 10% increase from 2020 — the issue has reached a tipping point, prompting the Board of Supervisors to declare it a public health crisis last week.
Yesterday, some of you may have received an email with an advance copy of the 2022 HASD&IC Community Health Needs Assessment. While it’s not available publicly yet, wanted to share a few thoughts ahead of its upcoming release.
The month of September marks two important occasions meant to recognize important needs in our community.
The first — Hunger Awareness Month/Hunger Action Month — is designed to draw attention to the fact that food insecurity is greater than ever. Throughout the country, millions of Americans are being forced to make budgeting decisions while facing grocery prices that have risen more than 13% in the last 12 months, the largest increase since 1979.
As San Diego County’s population ages, so do this demographic’s health needs. Consider that by the year 2030, one in four San Diegans will be age 60 or older. That’s why in 2019, the San Diego Senior Emergency Care Initiative was launched. This first-of-its-kind public-private partnership — spearheaded by the County of San Diego and West Health — is designed to ensure this growing population has access to high-quality, senior-friendly care before.
If your house is anything like mine, lately you’ve probably been hearing a lot about Netflix’s hit show “Stranger Things.” You may even be a fan of it yourself. You’re probably also well aware that the show centers on a number of mysteries and supernatural events occurring around the fictitious town of Hawkins, Indiana.
