SLO County now has 89 confirmed cases of coronavirus
San Luis Obispo County has a total of 89 confirmed cases of coronavirus with six new cases as of Thursday, according to the county Public Health Department.
The number of cases has grown daily but likely doesn’t reflect an accurate count of the number of COVID-19 cases. The actual number is likely higher, but testing is limited, county Public Health Officer Dr. Penny Borenstein said.
Eight people in the county are hospitalized, including two who are in intensive care. Both patients in the ICU are on ventilators.
Of the confirmed coronavirus cases, 33 county residents who tested positive for coronavirus are weathering the illness at home, according to ReadySLO.org. According to Borenstein, the county checks in on at-home patients daily.
The other 48 cases have completely recovered, the department said.
People are considered recovered if they show no symptoms for 72 hours and it has been at least seven days since the onset of the illness, according to Center for Disease Control guidelines, Borenstein said. Recovered cases are not re-tested.
No county patients have died from COVID-19, the disease caused by the new coronavirus.
San Luis Obispo County confirmed Wednesday that healthcare workers in the county are among the patients who have recently tested positive for the virus.
SLO County coronavirus cases by area
The North County still has more than half of the county’s confirmed cases.
Broken down by city, Paso Robles has 24 cases, Atascadero has 17, Arroyo Grande has 13, San Luis Obispo has nine, Morro Bay and Templeton have six, and Nipomo has five.
The locations of nine cases are listed as other, which means they are in towns or cities with fewer than five cases, according to the county website.
The age range with the highest number of cases is 18 to 47 with 36 cases, followed by 65-plus with 28, 50 to 64 with 22 and under-17 with three.
The county Public Health Department has conducted 463 COVID-19 tests, 40 of which have been positive. The other 49 cases have been detected at private labs.
The county is still working on getting the total number of people in San Luis Obispo County that private labs have tested.
COVID-19 symptoms to watch
Symptoms of COVID-19 include fever, cough and shortness of breath. Older adults and individuals with underlying medical conditions are particularly vulnerable to the virus.
Health officials urge those who exhibit these symptoms to stay home, avoid contact with others, and call their health care provider or urgent care clinic before seeking medical care to receive safe arrival instructions, if directed to do so.
Go to the emergency room only if you are experiencing a medical emergency.
The county is currently preparing for a surge in cases and has asked qualified volunteers to apply for the Medical Reserve Corps. The corps would be activated in event that hospitals reach capacity and Cal Poly is used as an alternative care site.
To volunteer for the medical corps auxiliary, sign up at HealthcareVolunteers.ca.gov and then email the San Luis Obispo Medical Corps coordinator at slomrc@gmail.com.
Visit ReadySLO.org for the latest public health updates and recommendations.
This story was originally published April 2, 2020 at 1:16 PM.