Outbreak

By definition, four linked cases of a rare infectious disease is sufficient to constitute an outbreak. So it is safe for me to say we now we have an outbreak of COVID-19 in Fairfield. Five new cases, four which are linked to one location, Aperion Care of Fairfield. The two new Edwards county positives were tested here but officials say they don’t believe there is a connection to the nursing home.

I’m an optimist, but you are burying your head in the sand if you haven’t noticed what has happened at nursing homes elsewhere in Southern Illinois. The news out of Mt. Vernon and Newton has not been good. Both had small outbreaks which raged out of control.  In Mt. Vernon, 70 positives and 13 deaths. In Newton, 41 positives and six dead. Let us all pray that nothing like that will happen here. But we may be just at the start of this outbreak in our town.

Yes I said outbreak….because that’s what it is.

There’s no need to be totally fatalistic about it. One of the blessings of living in a small community with local healthcare providers is they are treating---not just patients--- but their friends and family---people they truly care about. 

As a community, we don’t need to be fighting, drawing lines in the sand, pointing fingers. We need to be coming together now….in prayer….lifting each other up.

And everyone needs to pray for the people who got bad news yesterday.

Pray that they will not be joined by others….

…that they will endure and allow us to stop using the word “outbreak” as a descriptor of our current condition.