This week on the Minnesota Native News Health Report, emergency medical teams from the federal government are being sent to the state to support hospitals during the current COVID-19 surge. Also, Dr. Antony Stately with the Native American Community Clinic talks about vaccines for younger children. Plus, an award has been given to two tribal health clinics in northern Minnesota. Here’s reporter Cole Premo.
Gov. Tim Walz announced that the federal government accepted his “urgent request” for emergency medical staffing assistance, and now two Department of Defense medical teams are on the way.
The emergency staffing teams, with 22 medical personnel each, will be supporting staff at Hennepin Healthcare in Minneapolis, also known as HCMC, and St. Cloud Hospital. They’re expected to arrive the week of Nov. 22.
In Minnesota hospitals as of Nov. 16, there are 1,382 patients being hospitalized for COVID-19, which is the highest figure in 2021. Only 47 intensive care unit beds remain available for Minnesota patients.
Health officials say Minnesotans can support hospitals by getting vaccinated, wearing a mask in indoor public settings, testing as appropriate and social distancing.
Meanwhile, the Food and Drug Administration has officially expanded its emergency authorization of Pfizer’s and Moderna’s COVID-19 vaccine booster shots to all adults. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will need to issue recommendations before its officially greenlit, but many states, including Minnesota, are preparing to give out the shots soon.
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In other news, COVID-19 vaccine doses are now available for children ages 5 to 11 years old.
In COVID-19 Community Conversations, Antony Stately, PhD, talked about the importance of vaccination and how the virus can spread through families.
“I just think folks are just beginning to see the value of having your child vaccinated, so we can all enjoy being close to each other, and not have to repeat what happened last year,” said Stately.
“I think it’s really important that your children are going into schools, they’re playing in extracurricular activities. They’re petri dishes of infection anyways, even before covid. I think it’s important to recognize the danger. Maybe they will be fine, but they could bring it home to a family member. Immunocompromised people are very vulnerable,” said Stately.
Check your local clinic or tribal health clinic for vaccines for more information on pediatric vaccinations. You can also go to mn.gov/vaccine and use the vaccine locator map.
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Lastly, two northern Minnesota tribal health systems have received awards for their vaccination efforts.
Recently, the Minnesota Department of Health announced that the 2021 MN Rural Health Team Award has been given to Cass Lake Indian Health Services and Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe, Health Division.
The health department says from January to April of this year, both health systems not only developed and implemented a mass immunization model for eligible Native Americans, but the rural community at large.
In 15 mass vaccine events, over 12,000 vaccine doses were provided, 70% of elders were vaccinated before it was a national goal, and 70% of the Cass Lake Indian Health Services user population was vaccinated before the president’s July 4th goal.
The pair of health systems are considered two of the best and fastest vaccine administration teams in the state, and their vaccination model has gotten attention from federal, state and private sector partners across the United States, the health department said.
I’m Cole Premo.
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