With COVID-19 activity a little quieter this week and many in the UW Medicine community taking advantage of mid-winter break, today’s update will be fairly brief. We do have some positive news — and a few important reminders — to share, so please read on.
COVID-19 cases across the region continue their downward trend with cases having fallen by more than 40% in the past week. The number of COVID-19 patients hospitalized at UW Medicine is also declining steadily. As of today, we have 25 COVID-19 patients across the system, and only seven in the ICU. Employee PCR testing reflects this trend as well. We had zero positives out of 26 tests on Monday, and only 4.4% positive for the week.
UW Medicine COVID-19 Activity Summary
Local/National/Global Epidemiology
King County: Public Health – Seattle & King County is reporting 364,844 total cases and 2,538 deaths as of Thursday, Feb. 24. The total number of cases over the past seven days is currently at 144.8 per 100,000 people (community transmission level = high).
Washington: The Department of Health reports 1,414,222 cases and 11,732 deaths as of Feb. 22.
United States: The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports 121,906 new cases, 78,518,045 total COVID-19 cases and 936,162 deaths as of Feb. 23.
Global: The WHO COVID-19 Dashboard reports 428,511,601 confirmed COVID-19 cases and 5,911,081 deaths as of Feb. 24.
In Other News
This week marks the two-year anniversary of the EOC (Emergency Operations Center), and we’d like to take a moment to acknowledge the incredible work those teams have done over two long and difficult years. They have enabled UW Medicine and our broader community to manage through surges and variants, testing shortages and ever-changing mandates, always ensuring that our patients have access to the best possible care every step of the way.
With Governor Inslee’s announcement that the indoor mask mandate will end on March 21, 2022, we have received a number of questions regarding masking requirements in our facilities. We will continue to follow CDC guidelines, and we will provide updates should our policies change.
Also, a reminder that all UW Medicine employees (except for those in non-clinical roles in the School of Medicine) are required to receive a COVID-19 vaccine booster shot or complete a declination process. If you haven’t received your booster, please go to https://c19-vaccine.uwmedicine.org and get your shot scheduled.
For more details on these and other COVID-related developments, please tune in to our next Town Hall on Friday, Feb. 25, at 3 p.m.
As always, thank you for stepping up to whatever comes our way.
Sincerely,
Abby Hussein, MD, MPH
Associate Medical Director, Infection Prevention & Control
University of Washington Medical Center
Nandita Mani, MD
Associate Medical Director, Infection Prevention & Control
University of Washington Medical Center
