Winslow Indian Health Center: Three coronavirus patients died before reaching hospital

Dr. Gregory Jarrin is a general surgeon at Winslow Indian Health Care Center, located south of the Navajo and Hopi Nations in Arizona.

Today, April 2, 2020, the Navajo Nation reports 214 coronavirus cases and 7 deaths.

KNAU RADIO FLAGSTAFF -- Melissa Sevigny: There’s a lot of concern with coronavirus overwhelming the capacity of our healthcare workers and our hospitals. Do you have a sense that that’s happening in Winslow?

Dr. Gregory Jarrin: In Winslow recently we’ve had three deaths in the community, none of which reached the hospital alive. We’ve been getting increasing numbers of cases in our emergency room and increasing numbers being diagnosed. Over the weekend we’ve had multiple admissions, but we are not yet overwhelmed. However in Tuba City and Flagstaff I know they have been much more overwhelmed. In Tuba City… they’re having a problem with staffing, there are a lot of people who have called out sick.

Listen and read more at KNAU:

https://www.knau.org/post/winslow-doctor-speaks-about-coronavirus-navajo-nation

https://www.knau.org/post/winslow-doctor-speaks-about-coronavirus-navajo-nation

Navajo Nation coronavirus cases increase to 214, with 40 new cases, test kits needed

Elderly Shopping Day on Wednesday on the Navajo Nation. Photo: Navajo President's Office.

40 new cases of COVID-19 reported for the Navajo Nation

By Navajo Nation President Jonathan Nez and Vice President Myron Lizer

Censored News

WINDOW ROCK, Ariz. — According to the Navajo Department of Health and Navajo Area Indian Health Service, in coordination with the Navajo Epidemiology Center, the number of positive tests for COVID-19 has reached a total of 214 for the Navajo Nation as of Wednesday. There remains a total of seven confirmed deaths related to COVID-19, as previously reported.

The 214 cases include the following counties: Navajo County, AZ: 97; Apache County, AZ: 22; Coconino County, AZ: 49; McKinley County, NM: 14; San Juan County, NM: 22; Cibola County, NM: 3; San Juan County, UT: 7

Navajo Nation President Jonathan Nez and Vice President Myron Lizer are demanding that more test kits and on-site laboratory testing be available on the Navajo Nation, which would increase testing and expedite the processing of results.

“We’re two weeks into this pandemic and we need many more test kits, we need testing labs in our communities so we can get results much quicker. The public needs to be mindful that these numbers are going to continue to increase if every family, every individual does not follow the advice of health care experts. We’re working around the clock to get the word out, but ultimately, it’s the decision of every individual. Stay home, stay safe, save lives!” said President Nez.

On Tuesday, President Nez issued another Executive Order extending the closure of the Executive Branch until April 26, except for essential personnel to continue essential services. The order also urged the Navajo Nation Board of Education to close schools on the Navajo Nation for the remainder of the academic year. The Navajo Nation Board of Education voted 8-0 to approve a resolution directing the closure of schools for the rest of the school year.

“We know that our health care workers and first responders are giving everything they have to fight for all of us! We need everyone to fight for them by staying home as much as possible and practicing social distancing. There’s no doubt that we will beat this virus, but it’s up to all of us whether that’s sooner or later. Our prayers are with all of our Navajo people each day as we continue the fight together,” Vice President Lizer stated.

The Navajo Nation’s daily curfew remains in effect from 8:00 p.m. to 5:00 a.m. The curfew does not apply to essential employees reporting to or from duty, with official identification and/or a letter of designation from their essential business employer on official letterhead which includes a contact for verification.

For more information including reports, helpful prevention tips, and more resources, please visit the Navajo Department of Health’s COVID-19 website at http://www.ndoh.navajo-nsn.gov/COVID-19. To contact the main Navajo Health Command Operations Center, please call (928) 871-7014.

----

Below New York Times map updated daily.

.

Lakota Joye Braun 'Being a good relative in the age of an international pandemic''

Photo Joye Braun by Karen Savage

The age of smallpox blankets was not that long ago

By Joye Braun

Cheyenne River Lakota

Censored News 

An international pandemic is upon us. We hear about it daily, sometimes hourly as we turn on our social media accounts, the television or the radio. Some of our nations, like the Navajo Nation in the southwest are experiencing growing cases while other tribal nations have so far stemmed the tide of this latest threat to our people.

It is time for caution. It is time to be proactive and take individual and collective responsibility for our people.

What that looks like is evolving. Some tribal nations are putting up signs warning residents and travelers through their territories that there are COVID -19 cases in the area. Some are putting in place curfews to stem people from roaming and others are considering border checkpoints onto their lands.

However. as a resident of one of a reservation that as of today has no known cases, I still see people not practicing social distancing. That new term that has come to mean staying 6 feet away from other people. To be cognizant of the interactions we have with other people and to not invite people over to your house for social gatherings, to limit interactions in social situations and to not shake hands as a form of greeting. All of things are hard on us as Indigenous people because we teach our children from an early age to shake elders hands out of respect, to go out of our way to look out for one another, and to check on one another during natural disasters like blizzards.

The Centers for Disease Control tells us the best way to not get sick is by avoiding being exposed to the disease. That’s why most tribal nations have implemented the essential and non-essential employee determination. If you are not essential, like here on Cheyenne River Sioux Reservation the employee is supposed to be home sheltering in place. If they are caught traveling off-reservation for non-medical or non-essential work, they won’t get paid leave. Some private businesses have shut down in-store purchases and are providing curbside or delivery services. Tribal businesses are trying to follow CDC guidelines but that can be hard when the general public refuses to comply.

Why do we need to do these things? A person can be a carrier for the disease and not know it. They may not have serious symptoms and not get tested and so they won’t know if they are a carrier. This one person goes to work, and has interactions there, goes home and is near their children, goes and visits grandma or grandpa, sees their cousin at the post office who has diabetes, all these people would then potentially be exposed. Their children run outside and go play with their neighbors then those children go home, more people are then exposed.

As Indigenous people, we have DNA memory and realistically that memory is not that long ago of smallpox blankets or other pandemics that spread in our communities. Diseases like the Spanish flu or Tuberculous are not that long ago. We have relatives in our family trees that are simply not there anymore because they passed on during these epidemics. This new disease is not an epidemic. It is a pandemic. We need to be good relatives.

We need to think what it means to be a good relative. As a relative, I want to protect the ones that I love. I want my elders to be able to pass on their knowledge and stories. I want our children to grow up and go to school and become scientists, teachers, lawyers, doctors themselves. I want to live to enjoy watching my grandchildren grow up and discover their passions and see them pick up the fight to survive and thrive as Indigenous communities.

The CDC has guidelines and lots of information on their webpage cdc.gov. Stay home, practice social distancing, cover your cough, wash your hands with soapy water for at least 20 seconds and do this often. If you are sick wear a mask. Clean and disinfect frequently touched objects like door handles, fridge doors, light switches, countertops, keyboards, etc.

Practicing caution while we face off with this threat to our people is our best defense to prevent a horrible scary outcome. I do think we haven’t seen the worst yet. I hope we don’t.

Coronavirus on Navajo Nation: 7 deaths and 174 cases

Field medical stations established on Navajo Nation

Twenty-six new cases and two more deaths related to COVID-19 reported, first of the month precautions in place

Navajo Nation President Jonathan Nez and Vice President Myron Lizer
Censored News

WINDOW ROCK, Ariz. — According to the Navajo Department of Health and Navajo Area Indian Health Service, in coordination with the Navajo Epidemiology Center, the number of positive tests for COVID-19 has reached a total of 174 for the Navajo Nation as of Tuesday. In addition, there are now a total of seven confirmed deaths related to COVID-19.

The 174 cases include the following counties:
Navajo County, AZ: 85
Apache County, AZ: 17
Coconino County, AZ: 40
McKinley County, NM: 10
San Juan County, NM: 15
Cibola County, NM: 1
San Juan County, UT: 6

“We are very sorry to hear of the loss of more lives due to the virus – we offer our prayers for the families of those who lost loved ones. In a few parts of the country, they are beginning to see a slight decline in new cases and it’s due to more and more residents staying home and practicing social distancing. Here on the Navajo Nation, we need everyone to fully grasp the importance of social distancing and the impact it has on fighting the spread of COVID-19. It’s completely up to us as individuals to do our part to beat the virus,” said Navajo Nation President Jonathan Nez.

President Nez and Vice President Myron Lizer, in coordination with the Division of Economic Development and the Navajo Health Command Operations Center, announced that Bashas’ Diné Markets on the Navajo Nation will extend their elderly shopping hours ‪from 6:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. on April 1 to reduce the risk of COVID-19 exposure and to provide the opportunity for elders to shop for essential items.

“We know that many elders need to purchase essential items on the first of the month, but we want them to take every precaution possible to keep themselves and others safe. We have a team that will be out at every grocery store on the Navajo Nation to help these efforts. We continue to pray for our Navajo people and health care workers each day,” stated Vice President Lizer.

Each store location will have informational and food distribution sites for elders that were coordinated by the Navajo Department of Health, Navajo Nation Division of Social Services, and the Navajo Nation Division of Economic Development. There will also be law enforcement presence to help regulate the flow of traffic.

On Tuesday, President Nez and Vice President Lizer continued to work with Federal Emergency Management Agency - Region 9 officials in Chinle, Ariz. to assess the best locations for federal medical stations. FEMA recently delivered beds, PPE’s, and other equipment to Chinle for the possible housing of patients.

The Navajo Nation’s daily curfew remains in effect from 8:00 p.m. to 5:00 a.m. The curfew does not apply to essential employees reporting to or from duty, with official identification and/or a letter of designation from their essential business employer on official letterhead which includes a contact for verification.

The Public Health Order outlines provisions for essential businesses as well. Everyone is encouraged to read the entire Public Health Order, which is available on the Navajo Department of Health website at: http://www.ndoh.navajo-nsn.gov/COVID-19.