Graham Briggs: Marking the one-year anniversary of COVID response in our community
Thinking back to February 2020, we had no idea how COVID-19 was going to impact our world, country, state, and county. We did not know how much it would change our lives, and we had no understanding of know how strong, resilient, and selfless Olmsted County residents could be.
The first case of COVID-19 was announced in Olmsted County on March 11, 2020, just two weeks after an Emergency Operations Center devoted to COVID-19 Planning and Response was established. The novel coronavirus had just been detected for the first time in the U.S. seven weeks earlier in Washington.
Since then, we have seen the devastating effect of the pandemic both locally and across the globe. We have endured tremendous sacrifices, loss, and disruptions to our daily lives. It’s impacted everyone, and we all have a story to tell.
But the story isn’t all sadness and devastation. We have seen a lot of good arise from COVID-19. Our health-care workers, first responders, epidemiologists, educators, parents, small business owners, and community organizations have stepped up to the challenges associated with the pandemic. We’ve witnessed strength, courage, and amazing adaptability. Our health-care partners took life-saving actions to research and implement new therapies to change the trajectory of the pandemic.
Over the course of the last year, our community has learned so much about this pandemic and helped to limit the impact here locally. Some examples include:
Learning how to protect ourselves and our loved ones. We wear masks; we stay six feet away from each other; we wash our hands and use hand sanitizer more than we ever have before!
Finding unique ways to stay connected, despite being physically separated. We now video chat, make more phone calls, and gather outdoors (six feet apart from one another, of course).
Paying better attention to our bodies and staying home when we feel sick.
Getting tested for COVID-19 and then quarantining and isolating ourselves to protect others.
Speaking to public health contact tracers when needed to help stop the spread of COVID-19 in our communities.
Putting COVIDawareMN on our smartphones, to alert us if we may have been exposed to COVID-19.
Following local information and data to better understand the path of the pandemic in our area.
Educating ourselves about the importance of vaccination and the availability of vaccines locally.
Today, Olmsted County ranks among the lowest in COVID-19 cases and deaths per capita in the state; but the work is not done. If 2020 was a year for resilience, 2021 will be a year of hope. A year ago, we knew we were starting something that would be difficult. Today, I have hope that we are beginning to work our way out of this pandemic. Brighter days are ahead. When it is your turn, please get your COVID-19 vaccine. Please be patient and know that everything you have done, and will continue to do, will help all of us return to the things we love and miss. Thank you. Your efforts and sacrifices are greatly appreciated.
Graham Briggs is the director of Olmsted County Public Health.
