As frontline providers mobilizing to fight an invisible enemy, and care for you, our community, we want you to know the truth.
These are very difficult times. At the time of writing this article there are more than 163,000 COVID-19 cases in the United States and almost 2,900 deaths. In our own Yolo County there are 24 cases and 1 death, and the numbers increase every day. We are hearing stories of significant challenges from our physician colleagues across the country, in hard hit areas like New York, and most recently from Southern California and the Bay Area. Hospitals and clinics are rapidly overwhelmed with people sick from COVID-19, making it very difficult to care for people with other conditions like heart attacks, stroke, asthma, or injuries. While we are doing everything we can to prepare for this pandemic, we need to slow the spread of the virus in our county.
WE IMPLORE YOU, please use social distancing and stay home unless you have to go shopping for food or seek medical care. There is no COVID-19 treatment and no 
vaccine. The virus spreads from person to person. The only way we can slow and eventually stop the spread of this virus is to keep 6 feet from other people.
Stay at home.
Learn, play and work at home.
Pray at home.
To help stop the virus from spreading and to stay as healthy as possible wash your hands regularly throughout the day, try not to touch your face, cover any cough or sneeze, clean your workspaces and frequently touched areas regularly, and do not smoke or vape any products.
Take care of yourself.
Eat and sleep well.
Get outside, sunshine and fresh air are healing.
Walk or run or ride bicycles, but not in groups, and critically, please maintain your 6 feet of distance.
If you are sick with COVID-19 symptoms such as a losing sense of smell, cough, sneeze, fever, or trouble breathing and wonder what to do, please call your healthcare provider. Most people will only have mild symptoms and should stay home and self-quarantine to prevent the spread of disease. Depending on how sick you are, your provider might recommend you be seen at the clinic or the emergency department. Please call your provider before coming in to be seen. Unfortunately, hospitals and clinics are locations with increased burden of COVID-19, and thus should be visited only if necessary. Our providers are working on new ways to allow you to remotely access healthcare such as phone or video visits, to help keep you safe.
There are currently not enough tests for those who are mildly ill, so if you are sick with a flu like illness stay home. We are only testing the sickest patients and those who risk transmitting the disease rapidly. As testing availability increases, our healthcare systems will be updating our community to changes in testing protocols. Again, please call your provider if you have questions about whether you should be tested.
Thank you for the sacrifices you are making during these tough times to protect yourselves, your families and friends, and our community. Your efforts will keep our local hospitals, clinics, and emergency departments running so we can continue to serve you in your greatest time of need.
Sincerely,
– Justin Chatten-Brown, MD, ER Medical Director, Woodland Memorial Hospital
– Suzanne Eidson-Ton, MD, MS, Chief Medical Officer, CommuniCare Health Centers
– Mark Ho, MD, Medical Director, Kaiser Permanente: Davis Medical Offices
– Karen Hopp, MD, President & CEO, Woodland Clinic Medical Group
– Kevin Jones, MD, ER Medical Director, Sutter Davis Hospital
– Anca Knoepfler, MD, Medical Director, UC Davis Health – Davis Clinic
– Jaime Lopez, PA, Medical Director, Winters Healthcare
– Melissa Marshall, MD, Chief Executive Officer, CommuniCare Health Centers
– Deven Merchant, MD, Chief Medical Executive, Sutter Davis Hospital
– Paul Riggle, MD, UC Davis Health – Davis Clinic
– Andrea Trader, MD, Pediatrician, Winters Healthcare
– Ron Chapman, MD, MPH, Public Health Officer for Yolo County Health and Human Services
– Mary Ann Limbos, MD, MPH, Deputy Public Health Officer for Yolo County Health and Human Services, Pediatrician at CommuniCare Health Centers
A lot of people are not heeding this advice and are acting badly. Please share your example of people in Davis acting badly below (for entertainment purposes only):
1. I went to a local food place to pick up one food staple that they specialize in, with goods often unpackaged for sale. The young person behind the counter wore no gloves, and luckily my item was in a bag. He took my debit card, ran him index finer across his nose, and handed the card back to me. This is the first time I have washed a debit card in soap and water.
2. (your entry here . . . )
Gloves are a bit tricky under the best of circumstances. If you don’t change them with every person you serve, there is no clear advantage to wearing them. Better off just watching your hands.
Possibly so . . . fingers and noses, not so much . . .
Well, that was a fun little game, children. We got all the way to one. It’s great to know only one instance of bad behavior has been experienced in Davis. We are indeed perfect. And that one young man who ran his finger across his nose with my debit card must be removed from that perfection for the good of the herd. Thank you all for participating.
Regarding the discussion of the utility of wearing a face mask: in an interview with a New York emergency room doc, he suggested that the real benefit of wearing a mask is that it provides a physical barrier and a reminder to not touch your face. Seems like it would be worth wearing one just for that reason alone.