COVID update

Barton County Health Department Administrator Joel Dermott is dropping a brief reminder that there are a lot of nasty viruses circulating throughout the community. He remarked, “In particular, we are seeing a high level of RSV in young children.” Statewide hospitalizations for kids with RSV is up and southwest Missouri area hospitals are seeing more than their faire share at this time. Dermott added, “We are also seeing some particular nasty strains of the flu, which impacts all age groups.” Washing hands, keeping your hands off your face and staying isolated when sick are all effective means of slowing down infection rates.

Dermott added that in addition, COVID numbers remain relatively low for the county and state in general, with only a handful of cases reported in the county over the past seven days. Dermott said, “We are however, beginning to see evidence of the Omicron BQ variants in testing in other areas of the state, which means we may see an uptick in cases in the next couple of months as the variant makes its way across the country.” Time will tell.

“Fall brings many wonderful things to the area for all to enjoy. Unfortunately, it brings a few things which we would prefer it left behind,” said Dermott.