FREE ACCESS: ‘Stay at home, stay safe, stay healthy’: now is the time to halt spread in Greene County

Thursday, April 2, 2020

The Greene County Health Department (GCHD) issued a press release on Thursday, April 2, 2020 urging residents to stay home in compliance with the order issued by the governor, in light of a recent surge in confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Greene County.

“GCHD urges residents to follow Governor Holcomb’s Directive for Hoosier to Stay-At-Home, Executive Order 20-08, as the number of confirmed local COVID-19 cases begin to rise,” the release states. “The health department reports that Greene County has experienced a sharp increase in confirmed, positive COVID-19 cases in the last 96 hours, going from one case on March 28, 2020 to seven cases as of today, April 1, 2020,” said Health

Department Administrator, Shari Lewis.

“Our Health Officer, Dr. Peter Powers, is on the front lines as he continues to treat and advise patients admitted to Greene County General Hospital. The Greene County Health Department supports minimizing the spread by continuing to educate, inform and contact trace exposures of COVID-19. Our Public Health Nurse, Stacie Fonderhide, leads this effort by personally contacting anyone who has been exposed to a lab-confirmed positive case. As the number of confirmed, positive COVID-19 cases increase in our county, we are all focused on managing this unprecedented situation with both urgency and a deep sense of care. As citizens, we must work together by taking appropriate actions to protect our families, friends and community by complying with the governor’s executive orders to stay at home during the State of Emergency COVID-19 Crisis.”

Lewis offered the following list of the most effective ways of minimizing the spread of COVID-19:

• Frequent hand washing

• Not touching your face

• Practicing cough etiquette and respiratory hygiene

• Regular cleaning and disinfecting of high contact surfaces

• Staying home if you are sick

• Distancing yourself from others who may be sick

• Practicing social distancing of six feet if you must go out for life sustaining activities like food or medical appointments.

Individuals and families who need help during this crisis may visit the health department’s website COVID-19 page at www.co.greene.in.us/health for links to resources provided by the state and other supportive service agencies.

“To the businesses in our community, we understand these are difficult and unprecedented days for all of us, and ensuring the well-being of our employees, our customers, partners, vendors and their families is our number one priority,” Lewis said. “As testing increases, our cases are expected to rise, which stresses why the governor has extended executive orders 20-04, 20-10 and 20-11 with executive order 20-14, pertaining to restaurants and alcoholic beverages through April 6. Our efforts to minimize the spread of COVD-19 is a moving target; therefore, the Governor may reassess executive orders often. In the interim, we know the most effective way of minimizing the spread of COVID-19 is to continue practice safety precautions such as canceling public and private large meetings and events; ensuring social distancing amongst employees and customers; routine environmental cleaning; and stopping dine-in, table-top, patio and parking lot service at restaurants, bars, nightclubs and other entities.”

Businesses who need assistance during this crisis may find useful information on the following website: Indiana Office of Community and Rural Affairs’ (OCRA) COVID-19 resources page at www.in.gov/ocra, for links to resources provided by the state and the Small Business Administration.

The Greene County Health Department is dedicated to transparency and pledges to keep the community informed by sharing information by press releases as well as its webpage at

www.co.greene.in.us/health. Up-to-date information on Indiana COVID-19 cases can also be found at ISDH at www.IN.gov/ISDH.

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