PORTLAND, Ore. (KTVZ) – There are six new deaths related to COVID-19 in Oregon, which increases the death toll from the state to 2,455, the Oregon Health Authority reported Thursday.
OHA also reported 733 new confirmed and suspected cases of COVID-19 as of 12:01 Thursday, bringing the state to 172,931.
Vaccinations in Oregon
OHA reported that 44,971 new doses of COVID-19 vaccines were added to the state immunization registry on Thursday. Of this total, 29 445 doses were administered on Wednesday and 15 526 on previous days, but were entered in the vaccine register on Wednesday.
The running average of seven days is now 38,728 doses per day.
Oregon has now administered a total of 1,242,066 doses of Pfizer, 1,069,417 doses of Moderna and 87,339 doses of Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccines. As of today, 945,453 people have completed a range of COVID-19 vaccines. There are 1 492 658 who have had at least one dose.
It can take a few days to complete the total daily totals, as suppliers have 72 hours to report doses and technical challenges have caused many suppliers to lag behind in their reporting. OHA has provided technical assistance to vaccination sites to improve the timeliness of their data entry into the state’s ALERT Immunization Information System (IIS).
To date, 1,499,355 doses of Pfizer, 1,301,500 doses of Moderna and 215,000 doses of Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccines have been delivered to locations in Oregon.
These data are provisional and subject to change.
OHA’s dashboards contain regularly updated vaccination data, and Oregon’s dashboard was updated Thursday.
COVID-19 hospitalizations
The number of hospitalized patients with COVID-19 in Oregon is 195, which is five less than Wednesday. There are 53 COVID-19 patients in intensive care unit (ICU) beds, which is one more than Wednesday.
The total number of patients in hospital beds may vary between check-in times. The numbers do not reflect admissions per day, nor the duration of the hospital. Staff restrictions are not captured in this data and may further limit bed capacity.
More information on hospital capacity can be found here.
St. Charles Bend reported 13 COVID-19 patients at 4 a.m. Thursday, three of whom were in the ICU, one in a ventilator.
Matters and deaths
The newly confirmed and suspected COVID-19 cases reported Thursday are in the following counties: Baker (16), Benton (18), Clackamas (63), Clatsop (3), Columbia (10), Coos (9) , Crook (5)), Curry (3), Deschutes (53), Douglas (10), Grant (1), Hood River (6), Jackson (34), Jefferson (5), Josephine (13), Klamath ( 46), Lane (74), Lincoln (6), Linn (23), Malheur (2), Marion (56), Morrow (1), Multnomah (120), Polk (22), Tillamook (3), Umatilla ( 9), Union (3), Wasco (8), Washington (98) and Yamhill (13).
Oregon’s 2,450 deaths COVID-19 is a 93-year-old woman in Clackamas County who tested positive on Jan. 14 and died in her home on April 9. The death certificate mentioned the COVID-19 disease or SARS-CoV-2 as a cause of death or a significant condition contributing to the death. She had underlying conditions.
Oregon’s 2,451st COVID-19 death is a 71-year-old woman in Baker County who tested positive on April 7 and died on April 14 at Saint Alphonsus Regional Medical Center. She had underlying conditions.
Oregon’s 2,452nd COVID-19 death is a 62-year-old man in Clackamas County who tested positive on March 22 and on April 5 in Providence St. Vincent Medical Center died. The presence of underlying conditions is confirmed.
Oregon’s 2,453 COVID-19 death is a 52-year-old man in Jackson County who tested positive on March 24 and died on April 14 at Asante Rogue Regional Medical Center. He had underlying conditions.
Oregon’s 2,454th COVID-19 death is an 82-year-old man in Linn County who tested positive on March 24 and died on April 8 at PeaceHealth Sacred Heart Medical Center in Riverbend. He had underlying conditions.
Oregon’s 2,455th death COVID-19 is an 89-year-old man in Polk County who tested positive on March 31 and died on April 13 at Salem Hospital. He had underlying conditions.
Test opportunity at “The Cut” is a step to build trust with people who live on the streets
Many people camp out and live along a bike path in the St. Johns area in Portland. The area is informally known as ‘The Cut’. In March, the Oregon Health Authority worked closely with activists and community organizations to test 49 people living there for COVID-19.
It was an event that required careful planning to build trust. “This is a population where we need to be especially vigilant,” said Mehera Christian, regional test coordinator at OHA. ‘These are individuals with complex physical and mental health problems. There is a lot of fear and mistrust. We work with community partners who know and serve the community to connect with sensitivity and compassion. ”
Every Saturday, grassroots activists and organizations go to a central location along the road with services and supplies. People who live there get food, blankets and socks, or to recycle their bottles and cans to get money back.
A few weeks before the test event, OHA staff met with trusted community partners to introduce themselves and spread the word about the upcoming test event.
‘Before the day of testing, we were able to find out what their concerns were. They heard about the opportunity and could ask questions, and then they knew some of our faces when we returned, ”says Christian.
One key partner was the Portland People’s Outreach Project (PPOP). The volunteer organization has been doing emergency and outreach work directly alongside The Cut for two years. To reduce the risk, they supply clean syringes, Naloxone (Narcan) and other supplies directly to users.
The part of the city, says PP June volunteer, Sam Junge, is particularly short of health services with a low barrier. The test event, he says, was a start to building trust and confirming the need for health services in the future. Junge also added that “this is proof of the importance of serving and investing in people who use drugs.”
OHA staff brought a mobile lab to The Cut and tested 49 people within two hours using quick results.
“We were focused on referrals to motels and arranged transportation when people tested positive,” says Junge.
But there were no positive tests.
“It’s just a big relief for people,” Christian says. “They are aware of the risks and, of course, they are particularly vulnerable because they are on the street. When we get past the issue of trust and people see that you are there and care and want to help, there is a sincere gratitude. ”