Monterey, CA Coronavirus Update From A Carmel Caregiver : Outlook Is Bleak

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There were 1,367new COVID-19 cases announced for Monterey County, bringing the total up to 33,671 with no new hospitalizations and 5 new deaths for a total of 247.  The number of ICU beds in the Bay Area is bleak, but Monterey County still has 41 ICU beds available versus zero for Santa Cruz County.

https://www.sfchronicle.com/bayarea/article/Bay-Area-at-less-than-1-ICU-availability-Here-15862959.php?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_content=headlines&utm_campaign=sfc_morningfix&sid=5936af7424c17c09a38000c4

Nationwide, there were 223K new cases for a total in excess of close to 12 million.  Deaths rose by over 2,000 to 379,020.  In California, the situation is bleak with a heavy outbreak in Southern California.  In California, the average number of new cases per day had increased by more than 250K to 2.786 million, while deaths rose by 1,367 (+4%) to 33,761. Please stay home as much as possible.  Stay safe.

Monterey, CA Coronavirus Update From A Carmel Caregiver : Deaths Up Significantly

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There were 311 new COVID-19 cases announced for Monterey County, bringing the total up to 34,072 with no new hospitalizations and 1 new death for a total of 248.  Nationwide, new cases were up 229,712 (+1%) and deaths almost doubled from yesterday’s count of 2,048 to 3,662.  In California, new cases were up 41,911 to 2.828 million, while deaths rose by 589 to 30,561.  Please stay home as much as possible.  Stay safe.

Monterey, CA Coronavirus Update From A Carmel Caregiver : Numbers Not Looking Good

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There were 1,096 new COVID-19 cases announced for Monterey County, bringing the total up to 30,521 with 12 new deaths for a total of 232.  860 of the cases are in the Monterey County jail.  Only one-third of those hospitalized are over 65 years old.  This virus truly is hitting the entire population.  Hispanics in Salinas are hit the hardest.  Of the cases reported so far, 73% are Latino or Hispanic.  Nationwide, there were nearly 300K cases which brought the cume total to 21.8 million, while deaths rose by almost 4K to 367,046.  In California, new cases were over 50K (+2%) while deaths soared by 2% (+565) to 28,642.  These numbers are terrible, please stay home and stay safe.

Monterey, CA Coronavirus Update From A Carmel Caregiver

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There were 411 new COVID-19 cases announced for Monterey County, bringing the total up to 30,521 with four new deaths for a total of 220.  Nationwide, there were 255,728 new cases for a total of 21.384 million, while deaths rose by 3,586 to 363,193.  In our state, there were 41,558 cases (+2%) for a cume total of 2.556 million, while deaths rose by 575 (+2%) to 28,077.  These numbers are not looking good, please stay home and stay safe.

Monterey, CA Coronavirus Update From A Carmel Caregiver

A close up of a cell with viruses inside


There were 411 new COVID-19 cases announced for Monterey County, bringing the total up to 30,521 with four new deaths for a total of 220.  Nationwide, there were 238,999 new cases for a total of 21.128 million, while deaths rose by 4,083 to 359,607.  A record 131,100 people are in the hospital with coronavirus.  Unfortunately, experts say that it’s likely to get worst with all of the holiday travel Americans did.  The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) say that COVID-19 is now the third leading cause of death.  In California, ICU units in at least two regions are filled to capacity and some EMTs have had to wait with patients outside of hospitals for hours because there is no room.  In our state, there were 39,216 cases (+2%) for a cume total of 2.514 million, while deaths rose by 482 (+2%) to 27,502.  These numbers are staggering, please stay home and stay safe.

Keep Your Immune System Strong With A Mediterranean Diet

A farmers market with fresh vegetables and fruits.


With coronavirus running rampant, keeping your immune system healthy is critical.  There are a number of things you can do such as getting enough exercise, not smoking, staying hydrated, having quality sleep time and eating a healthy diet.  Sticking to a Mediterranean diet is a good way of keeping your good health, and it’s delicious.  A study published in the journal Frontiers of Physiology found that healthy people aged 65-79 who ate a Mediterranean diet and took 10 micrograms of Vitamin D daily for a year were able to help offset age-related declines in immunity.  The Mediterranean diet involves eating a lot of vegetables, fruit, nuts, whole grains and one ounce of food daily.  Stay away from red meats and instead eat salmon and other fish, with modest portions of egg.  Olive oil is the fat of choice, and a glass or two of red wine each night tops of the meal.

https://www.cedars-sinai.org/blog/boosting-your-immune-system.html

 

 

Don’t Let COVID-19 Prevent You From Regular Skin Cancer Checkups

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Coronavirus may be keeping you from going to the doctor as much as you need to.  However, telemedicine makes it easy to see a doctor.  Even dermatologists are now available via videoconference.  A company called DermTech is transforming telemedicine to detect skin cancer.  According to the American Cancer Society, melanoma has a 99% five-year survival rate if caught early.  However, this survival rate drops to 65% if it has spread locally and 25% if spread distantly.  For more information, go to https://dermtech.com/

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https://www.futureofpersonalhealth.com/skin-health/understanding-preventing-and-identifying-skin-cancer-this-winter/

Monterey, CA Coronavirus Update From A Carmel Caregiver : 1,759 New Cases

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After being completely silent since January 1, Monterey County reported today that there have been 1,759 new cases bringing the total over 30,000 with 20 new fatalities for a total of 216. Natividad has seven COVID-19 patients, CHOMP 10, and Salinas Valley Memorial has 14.  The hospitals have 2, 3 and 8 open ICU beds respectively.   Nationwide, there were 198K new cases for a total of 20.889 million to date, while deaths rose by 3,127 to 355,524.  In California, there were 30,375 new cases for a cume total of 2.475 million while deaths rose by 382 to 27,020.  Please stay home and stay safe!

https://www.latimes.com/projects/california-coronavirus-cases-tracking-outbreak/monterey-county/

 

Please visit us at www.familyinhomecaregiving.com

Monterey Bay Aquarium Let’s Natividad Store COVID-19 Vaccine In Freezers


Thanks to Monterey Bay Aquarium for allowing the use of their extra cold freezers to store incoming COVID-19 vaccine.  The Pfizer vaccine needs to be stored in industrial freezers, and now the Monterey Bay area has access to one of these freezers.  “We have started to see the vaccines arrive and we really see that as really our only pathway out of the pandemic,†said Andrea Rosenberg, Natividad Hospital Operations & Support Services and Assistant Administrator.  “So, there’s a lot of hope and excitement at the hospital with the arrival of these vaccines,†she continued.

https://www.mercurynews.com/2020/12/31/monterey-bay-aquarium-loans-natividad-hospital-ultra-cold-freezer-for-covid-19-vaccine/

Long Term Care Facilities Account For 40% Of COVID-19 Deaths

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published a story about how the fear of catching the disease has caused many patients to have gone weeks without a shower or having their teeth brushed, while residents with dementia have suffered from lack of human contact.  This often leads to depression, loss of weight, mobility and speech.  Sharon Wallace, a senior whose multiple sclerosis caused her to go into a nursing home, told the NYT, “I feel like my health is going downhill.”  This has made Aging In Place a more popular option as Assisted Living Facilities become hotbeds for disease.  “Nursing homes are really little hospitals, yet they’re not staffed like it.  If you asked an I.C.U. nurse to take care of 15 people, she’d laugh at you, but that’s essentially what we have,” Chris Laxton, the executive director of AMDA, the Society for Post-Acute and Long-Term Care Medicine said.