Hospital limiting visitations
Tallulah Falls School is going virtual through the Labor Day holiday due to the rise in COVID-19 cases in the surrounding area.
“The number of positive cases and quarantined individuals in Habersham and the surrounding counties reflect what is happening in the rest of the world. We see numbers high enough for us to add another layer of protection for Tallulah Falls School students, faculty and staff,” Head of School Dr. Larry Peevy said in a letter to parents regarding the temporary switch to blended learning.
Unless otherwise notified, students will return to on-campus classes on Tuesday, Sept. 7. The dormitories will stay open for the majority of the international boarding students, while school officials are asking our in-state domestic boarding student families to pick up their students.
TFS sports will continue during this time, Peevy’s letter said.
“We have notified all of our families of this decision and have received tremendous support,” Peevy said Thursday.
Habersham County’s seven-day moving average hit 26.1 cases per day Wednesday, marking the highest numbers since mid-January.
Habersham Medical Center is once again nearing full capacity as COVID-19 continues to spread throughout the community. According to HMC’s Vice President of Wellness Kesha Clinkscale, another record was broken Wednesday as 109 patients sought medical attention for the virus, exceeding the
previous record of 107 patients which was set Monday.
“We are also at near capacity with 33 patients on MedSurg and four patients in ICU,” Clinkscale said.
The major spike in COVID-19 cases has prompted HMC to announce Thursday that the hospital is suspending all visitors on the Medical Surgical Floor effective immediately, according to Clinkscale, who added that one support person will be permitted to accompany emergency room patients.
HMC’s off-site offices, which include physicians practices, general surgery, and the Rehabilitation and Orthopedics Complex will also be open to patients only, Clinkscale said. No visitors will be permitted at Habersham Home.
Clinkscale went on to explain the protocol the hospital has in place in the event that full capacity is reached. Diversion status, Clinkscale said, is a temporary status for a hospital or healthcare facility which informs local emergency medical services that its beds are full and that it cannot take new patients.
“Diversions are only done when it is safe to send the patient elsewhere and they are stable enough to make the journey,” Clinkscale said.
Clinkscale added that 97 percent of the patients admitted to the HMC are unvaccinated and that 100 percent of people who died from COVID-19 were also unvaccinated, further stressing the need for the community to reach a higher vaccination rate.
Clinkscale said that physicians may consider exceptions to the visitor suspension in the event of extreme end-of-life situations.
According to Karen Hughes, the county nurse manager for Habersham’s Public Health Department’s County, the rate of unvaccinated individuals contracting COVID-19 is still on the rise countywide.
Hughes confirmed that the health department has taken steps to encourage more members of the community to receive the vaccine, stating that the department has reached out to the public and businesses via Facebook and by phone. Hughes said that the health department has called businesses in the area and offered to come out and administer any of the three vaccines the department has on hand.
“All three vaccinations are available,” Hughes said. “And we take walk-ins any time.”
Hughes said that while there is no designated offsite location for people to get vaccinated, the department could re-open an off-site vaccination location next month if the numbers continue to rise.
The health department has also reached out to the school systems and offered to vaccinate members of the faculty and staff, Hughes said.
Hughes said that a total of 10,430 people have received the COVID-19 vaccine in Habersham County.
There have been 5,046 confirmed positive COVID-19 cases in Habersham County during the pandemic.