With COVID-19 cases now trending in the right direction, it’s certainly welcome news and should help ease the strain that your health care workers have been facing since the start of the pandemic. This is due in large part to the vaccine, which has kept the virus at bay and patients out of the hospital.
September is Hunger Awareness Month, a time dedicated to raise awareness — not just locally, but across the U.S. — of individuals and families who face food insecurity, and the impact hunger has on overall health and well-being.
With last week’s full approval by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) of the Pfizer vaccine for ages 16 and over, there is great hope that it will help those who remain unvaccinated to get off the fence. And approval couldn’t have come soon enough, as hospitalizations continue to increase.
The start of the new school year typically brings with it a certain amount of trepidation for students, parents, and teachers alike. This year, that trepidation is only enhanced by COVID-19.
Last week’s public health officer order on COVID-19 testing and personal protective equipment for unvaccinated health care workers and state employees may not be sitting well with some, but it’s the right thing to do. As cases — and hospitalizations — continue to rise both regionally and throughout the state, more must be done to help stem the virus.
On the off-chance that anyone needed proof of COVID-19’s relentless grasp on the state and the region specifically, one only needs to take a quick look at the numbers.
Even in the best of times, burnout is common for health care workers. The pandemic — which uprooted workplace routines and turned knowns into unknowns — has only made these stressful and demanding jobs that much harder.
While the Biweekly Briefing was not originally scheduled to publish this week, I would be remiss if we didn’t acknowledge Sara Steinhoffer, who is retiring on July 2 after 12 years as vice president of government relations at Sharp HealthCare.
More than a year ago, the world as we had known it changed — perhaps forever. Those who were working in offices were sent home. Restaurants pivoted to delivery and take out. Doctors’ and dentists’ offices turned to telehealth or even closed temporarily.
By year’s end, we should know which two health plans the state has chosen to administer Medi-Cal contracts in San Diego County.
