HUNTSVILLE, Ala. — During Tuesday's Madison County daily COVID-19 news conference, Dr. Pam Hudson, CEO of Crestwood Medical Center was asked about the rising numbers in Marshall County and the new hot spot discovered at Wayne Farms in Albertville.
Dr. Pam Hudson, CEO of Crestwood Medical Center, says “Those things can easily happen anywhere, and that’s what we have to be vigilant for as we go back to work.”
Madison County leaders say they’re doing their best to make sure we’re not next on the list. Starting with the next phase in addressing the virus: Containment. Dr. Hudson clarifies by saying, “Isolating the people who are sick as well as any of their contacts who might get sick.”
We're told social distancing, sanitizing and masking practices will still be in place. Madison County Commissioner, Dale Strong, says, “If we let up this next week, I believe it could set us back for another couple of weeks.”
People are counting down the days until April 30th, when Alabama’s “stay at home” order expires, but COVID-19 still poses a big risk.
If people start returning to work soon, there are some major changes they might see. Dr. Hudson says, “Things like taking temperatures when people go back to work.”
In county buildings, masks will be worn and citizens will be required to clean their hands when entering. Dale Strong tells us, “... monitoring number of people in each building to maintain and reduce occupancy to ensure social distancing. Plexiglas is being installed in high traffic areas to protect both residents and employees.”
Gov. Ivey mentioned, testing more people would give her a better idea of when to re-open the state’s economy. But, that’s just not an option now. Dr. Hudson says,“They just don’t have enough test kits to be able to understand what the disease penetration is in the population.”
D. Hudson says we're in good standing with our County’s supply of PPE, most of which is being flown into Huntsville International Airport. But, officials are conserving as much as they can in the case of a spike.
Dale Strong says, “It’s not if it’s gonna happen, it’s when it’s gonna happen, and we’ve got to be prepared. And I can assure you that the Mayor of Huntsville, the Mayor of Madison and myself are already prepared for the next disaster.”
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