Today’s NewsStand

Today’s NewsStand

By Iowa Hospital Association|
|January 13, 2021

Iowa news

More than 90K Iowans get at least one dose of COVID-19 vaccine

More than 90,000 Iowans had received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine by Monday, public health officials reported, nearly a month after the first inoculations in the state were given Dec. 14. In all, 96,686 doses have been administered in Iowa. Of those, 91,501 went to Iowa residents. Nearly 5,700 people so far have had two doses of a vaccine, as is required to reach full effectiveness. (The Gazette)

UIHC officials still accepting participants into new Novavax COVID-19 vaccine trials

New clinical trials began last week at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics for a COVID-19 vaccine officials there hope will be even more viable for global distribution. UIHC began enrolling participants in the Novavax trial on Monday last week. Winokur said roughly 25 have been enrolled so far, locally — though many more have expressed interest and may yet be added, adding that the trial is still accepting new participants. (Des Moines Register)

Genesis Safe at Home keeps many COVID-19 patients out of hospital

Genesis COVID Safe at Home, modeled after a program started by University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics, provides home care and support for high-risk patients who have tested positive for COVID-19. The team of doctors, nurses and support staff use regular contacts, including telemedicine visits via phone and video, as enrolled patients fight the virus safely at home. Genesis COVID Safe at Home patients receive a package of home monitoring equipment. In the kit are a pulse oximeter and thermometer for self-evaluation. (Quad City Times)

National news

Balancing tech and patient care in telehealth: A case study with CallOnDoc

Telehealth took on a whole new importance in 2020, with the pandemic making virtual doctor visits an excellent alternative to spending time in a crowded clinic waiting room. But there’s a lot more to telehealth than screenings for COVID-19 and diagnosing simple issues like ear infections. (Forbes)

Three big problems and three possible solutions to vaccine rollout

By now, you probably know there are nationwide issues with the vaccine rollout. Websites have crashed, phone systems are overwhelmed and COVID-19 cases continue to increase. The American Hospital Association has estimated that 1.8 million people need to be vaccinated daily from now until May to reach widespread immunity. There are three major problems experts have identified with the rollout and three possible solutions. (WXIA)

COVID-19 is mutating. What does that mean for us?

Just as vaccines begin to offer hope for a path out of the pandemic, officials in Britain this past weekend sounded an urgent alarm about what they called a highly contagious new variant of the coronavirus circulating in England. Citing the rapid spread of the virus through London and surrounding areas, Prime Minister Boris Johnson imposed the country’s most stringent lockdown since March. (New York Times)

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