CUYAHOGA COUNTY, Ohio — Pointing out a sign of hope, the Cuyahoga County Board of Health (CCBH) confirmed that on Monday of this week, there were more people who recovered from COVID-19 than people who became infected with the virus.
Romona Brazile, deputy director of prevention and wellness at the CCBH, who joked during Friday’s briefing that she tries to stay off social media as much as possible, said she couldn’t help but see that reoccurring question as to why the number of recovered cases isn’t being as reported as frequently as some would like.
She confirmed that as of Friday, there are have been 340 people who have recovered from COVID-19 and who have been taken out of isolation.
On Monday, health officials received 14 new lab confirmed cases and they discontinued 20-21 people from isolation.
“To me, that is a sign of hope that we will have more days like that and we know that it will come and ebbs and flows, but it does give us hope that we're on the right path,” said Brazile.
In the graph below, the blue bar represents the number of people who have recovered from the virus. In the middle of the week, the CCBH reported the most recovered cases.
"We actually celebrate every time we get to clear someone," said Dr. Heidi Gullett, medical director at the CCBH.
While any of recovered cases are a good step in the direction, new data from the board of health shows an increase in hospital utilization in adult and pediatric facilities.
Hospitalizations in the community range from 20 years of age all the way to people in their 80s, 90s, or 100s.
“We have a lot of community dwelling elders in our community, which is really important part of understanding how this affects everyone," Gullett said.
There are currently 243 confirmed hospitalizations in the county and 79 ICU admissions, not including the City of Cleveland.
As each week continues, the zip codes keep getting darker, which indicates there are more cases of community spread.
"The picture you can take away from this is that the infections are throughout our community and they don't stop at the Cuyahoga County borders. Our neighboring health departments have been releasing their maps as well," said Gullett.
Board of Health officials stressed the importance of residents answering their calls to discuss possible transmission in order to properly contact trace.
"I would ask that if we if you are called by our team, please consider talking to us. Please consider giving us the information that would help you and your family and your friends get through this. We can't do this work of case identification, contact tracing, isolation and quarantine without your help," said said.
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