The Whiteside County Health Department and CGH Medical Center would like to remind residents that coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is NOT circulating in Illinois communities. Illinois has only had two cases of COVID-19, and both cases were in Chicago among someone who had recently returned from China and their spouse. The Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) will let the public know if there is a confirmed case of COVID-19 or an increased risk to the public which remains low at this time.
The United States is taking a multi-layered approach to protecting the public from COVID-19 and any outbreaks of other infectious diseases. If you have any questions about coronavirus disease 2019 – including traveler restrictions, quarantine, and other steps CDC, IDPH and local health departments are taking – please call the 24/7 IDPH hotline at 1-800-889-3931 or email [email protected].
Also, please note that as an additional step to protect our communities – although there is currently NO increased risk of COVID-19 in our area – CGH Medical Center, the CGH Main Clinic, and all of the CGH outlying facilities have implemented travel screenings for ALL patients per recommendation by the CDC and IDPH. These screenings may add additional on-hold time when calling into your CGH healthcare provider or while waiting to be seen.
However, an infectious disease currently active in Whiteside County that IS of concern is Influenza (flu). Statewide we are seeing approximately 2.5 times the flu activity compared to this time last year and three times the Illinois Regional Baseline. This increased activity is prior to the annual spike we traditionally see in March.
Remember the 3 C’s Simple Steps To Help Prevent And Stop the Spread of Respiratory Illnesses like COVID-19 and Influenza:
CLEAN– clean your hands frequently by washing your hands with soap and warm water.
COVER – cover your cough and sneeze.
CONTAIN – contain your germs by staying home if you are sick.
For more information:
Go to IDPH and CDC websites.
http://dph.illinois.gov/topics-services/diseases-and-conditions/diseases-a-z-list/coronavirus
https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/index.html
http://www.dph.illinois.gov/topics-services/diseases-and-conditions/influenza/influenza-surveillance