Monterey, CA Coronavirus Update From A Carmel Caregiver

A close up of a cell with viruses inside


There were 287 more coronavirus cases reported yesterday in Monterey County, bringing the total up to 28,351 with three new deaths, nine new hospitalizations and no new deaths.  Nationwide, the number of cases were up 244,228 to 20.197 million, while deaths jumped by 6,257 to 348,992.  In California, new cases were up 10,995 to 2.375 million, while deaths rose by 243 to 26,390.  Please stay home and stay safe!

Monterey, CA Coronavirus Update From A Carmel Caregiver

A close up of the word coronavirus with an image of a virus


There were 205 more coronavirus cases reported yesterday in Monterey County, bringing the total up to 28,064 with three new deaths.  Hospitals are overwhelmed, with Salinas Valley Memorial Hospital reporting its ICU is now full.  CHOMP is close to being full.  â€Our staff has been caring for COVID-19 patients for 10 months, and some of our ICU nurses who have been at our hospital for 30 years-plus have seen more deaths this past year than at any time in their careers,” Pete Delgado, CEO of Salinas Valley Memorial Hospital, told the Carmel Pine Cone. Nationwide, the number of cases jumped past 20 million.  It took 292 days to hit 10 million cases and just 54 days for that number to double.  Deaths rose by almost 3K to 347,248.  In California, the outlook is bleak.  New cases were up 2% (+43,526) while deaths rose 2% (+536) to 25,979.  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 570 more coronavirus cases reported yesterday in Monterey County, bringing the total up to 27,859 with 11 new hospitalizations and three new deaths.  Nationwide, there were 229,349 new cases for a grand total of 19.819 million.  Deaths rose by 3,698 to 344,251, an increase of 1%.  In California, there were 36,828 new cases, up 2%, bringing the total up to 2.279 million, while deaths rose by 480 to 25,443.  Please stay home as much as possible, this coronavirus is spreading fast.

Monterey, CA Isolation Of Nursing Homes Can Cause Seniors To Give Up Hope

A woman looking out of the window at her home.


The San Francisco Chronicle recently wrote a sad story about Shirley Drexler who died two months into the coronavirus pandemic, “not from COVID-19.  She died of despair.â€Â  According to the article, she was called the “queen of Rhoda Goldman Plaza,†an assisted living facility in the Western Addition.  She joined in almost every activity, flitting from table to table during long lunch hours.  However, on March 17, Drexler and every other resident were abruptly shut in their rooms.  She stopped eating and didn’t want to get out of bed.  “It was like she lost the will to keep going,†Adrienne Fair, assistant executive director of the facility, told the San Francisco chronicle.  At Family inHome Caregiving, we find this story all too familiar.  When family members decide to institutionalize a senior, they often lose hope and quickly pass away.  Without the familiar faces of friends and family and their normal routine, they often lose the will to live.  At Family inHome Caregiving, we focus on giving our senior clients plenty of exercise, nutritious meals and plenty of social interaction.  We strive to allow seniors to remain in their own homes and independent for as long as possible and are seeing many families pull their loved ones out of local facilities to be brought back home so they don’t catch COVID-19.


https://www.sfchronicle.com/bayarea/article/Bay-Area-seniors-struggle-with-isolation-15673820.php?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_content=headlines&utm_campaign=sfc_morningfix&sid=5936af7424c17c09a38000c4

Monterey Bay Aquarium Lets Natividad Store COVID-19 Vaccine In Freezers

A vial of influenza vaccine next to two syringes.


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/

Monterey, CA Coronavirus Update From A Carmel Caregiver

A close up of the word coronavirus with an image of a virus


There were a hefty 537 cases of coronavirus reported yesterday in Monterey County, bringing the total up to 27,289.  There were 12 new hospitalizations, and local hospitals are being overwhelmed.  The number of COVID-19 cases in the four Monterey County hospitals has grown from 12 on December 13 to 191 today, with the number of ICU patients growing from 13 to 36 during the same time frame.  There are only 14 ICU beds available in the four hospitals.  Nationwide, there were over 200K cases, bringing the total to 19.590 million, with deaths rising by 4,110 to 340,353.  In California, there were 31,454 new cases, bringing the total up to 2.242 million, while deaths rose by 419 to 24,963.  Please stay home as much as possible, this coronavirus is spreading fast.

Monterey, CA Get Your Flu Shot! Influenza And COVID-19 Could Be A Deadly Combination!

A vial of influenza vaccine next to two syringes.


Each year’s vaccine introduces three to four inactive strains of influenza, which spur your body to create antibodies against the actual virus.  In a four-year study from New Zealand, flu shots reduced influenza admissions by 82%!  Unfortunately, the vaccine is less effective in older people, so if you are 65 or older make sure that you ask your doctor about a Fluzone High-Dose vaccine, which is four times stronger.  Ordway on Alvarado Street, CVS, Rite Aid or even Safeway pharmacy has plenty of doses—and hopefully the coronavirus vaccine is coming soon as well.

Retirement May Be Easier In A Life After COVID-19 World

A jar of coins with the word retirement written on it.


Some experts are saying that figuring out what to do in retirement might actually be easier after having had to stay at home most of the time due to the coronavirus.  Working from home can provide a sense for “what retirement might look like,†said Dr. Pinchas Cohen, dean of the Leonard Davis School of Gerontology at the University of Southern California.  People are reflecting and reevaluating what important and changing plans accordingly.  George Kinder, founder of the Kinder Institute of Life Planning asks his clients three questions to clarify their goals : What would you do if you had all of the time and money in the world?  How would you live if you knew you had only five to ten years left?  And what would you most regret if you died tomorrow?

https://www.wsj.com/articles/how-covid-19-will-change-aging-and-retirement-11605452401

Monterey, CA Coronavirus Update From A Carmel Caregiver


After sending out a bulletin yesterday from Monterey County saying there were no new cases here the day before yesterday, todays report says there were only 29 new cases reported yesterday.  The numbers seem unlikely, but the total now stands at 26,752 which appears to be a restatement. Another 1,204 cases appear to be added back into the numbers since their last report.  Nationwide, there were 189,444 new cases, for a cume total of 19.389 million while deaths rose by 2,513 to 336,443.  In California, there were 29,452 new cases for a total of 2.211 million.  Deaths rose by 213 to 24,544.Please stay home and stay safe as much as possible.

Monterey, CA Coronavirus Update From A Carmel Caregiver

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There is a lack of information coming out of Monterey County, which sent out a bulletin saying there were no new cases here yesterday.  That seems unlikely, given that there were 151,102 new cases across the country yesterday bringing the total to 19.2 million.  The U.S. now has 20% of the world’s deaths from COVID-19, but has only 4% of the population.  Yesterday, deaths rose by 1,524 for a cume total of 334,130.  In California, there were almost 37K new cases, up 2%, for a total of 2.181 million, while deaths rose by 100 to 24,331.  Stay tuned, and don’t trust the statistics for Monterey County.