MEDIA RELEASE

For Immediate Release

Sioux County “Go Bucket” Initiative

The School Resource Officers (SROs) in Sioux County, together with Community Health Partners, the Sioux County Public Health Department, are excited to announce a “Go Bucket” initiative.

“Go Buckets” are emergency buckets filled with supplies that teachers and students may need if they are confined to a classroom for several hours for a lockdown or a severe weather event. This is a great way our community can work together to help our schools be prepared for emergencies as they not only educate but also protect our children. SRO’s have determined that there are approximately 675 classrooms in Sioux County schools.

We ask for your support in this initiative. If you would like to donate items for the “Go Buckets” a list of supplies can be found on Community Health Partners’ website at www.siouxcountychp.org.  Monetary  donations are also welcome to help purchase needed items. Donations and checks can be dropped off at the Sioux County Sheriff’s office or mailed to:

Sioux County Sheriff’s Office

Public Safety Center

4363 Ironwood Ave. Ste 1

Orange City, IA  51041

Checks can be made out to Sioux County Sheriff’s Office with “Go Bucket” in the memo line. Please make your donation by December 29.

This collaborative effort includes:

• Sioux County Sheriff’s Office SROs – Deputy Waylon Pollema and Deputy Jessica Dorhout
• Rock Valley Police Department SRO – Lt. Jeremy Spaans
• Sioux Center Police Department SRO – Officer Kyle Munneke
• Sioux County Community Health Partners

If you have any questions, please reach out to the Sioux County Sheriff’s Office (712-737-2280) or to one of the SROs in your community.

We have seen an increase in illnesses in Sioux County, including influenza, COVID-19, and several other viruses. Specifically, we have seen a significant increase in COVID-19 in the last two weeks. Please do what you can to keep yourself healthy and to prevent the spread of illness:

• Give your body exercise, rest, and healthy foods
• Do not go to work or school when you are sick
• Wash your hands frequently with soap and water
• Cover your coughs and sneezes
• Consider wearing a mask when around many people in an indoor space
• Get your flu and COVID-19 vaccines

Radon is a naturally occurring gas that can build up in your home. It is the leading cause of lung cancer in people who do not smoke. You can’t see radon. Or smell it. Or taste it. You can’t tell if there is radon in your home unless you test for it. Homes should be tested for radon every 3-4 years. High levels of radon can be found in any type of home.

Iowa has the highest average radon concentration of any state in the U.S., with 7 of 10 homes having a radon concentration above 4pCi/L, which is considered too high. Residents of Sioux County should be keenly aware of radon and the dangers it poses since average Sioux County levels are much higher even than the State of Iowa:

• United States average: 1.3 pCi/L
• Iowa average: 8.5 pCi/L
• Sioux County average: 11.1 pCI/L

Testing your home for radon is simple and inexpensive. Radon test kits are available through Community Health Partners and at city offices throughout Sioux County. Radon test kits are available through Community Health Partners for $10 and at city offices throughout Sioux County or can be ordered through our website https://siouxcountychp.org/radon-kit-order/. Directions are included in the kit. It is important to test your home during winter months when doors and windows have been kept closed. If test results show elevated radon levels, you should talk to a certified radon mitigation specialist. They will work with you to reduce the level of radon in your home.

For more information about radon, see http://www.lung.org/radon, call the American Lung Association of Iowa at 515.309.9507, or email [email protected]. For more information about radon test kits, contact Community Health Partners of Sioux County (712) 737-2971 or [email protected]

Community Health Partners of Sioux County
Phone – 712.737.2971 or 1.800.435.3454
Email – [email protected]
Website – www.siouxcountychp.org

Sioux County, like most of the rest of the country, is experiencing an uptick in COVID-19 cases.

There are a number of things you can do to help reduce the spread and severity of illness in our community. Community Health Partners, Hawarden Regional Health, Hegg Health Center, Orange City Area Health System, Sioux Center Health, and Promise Community Health Center urge you to:

1. Get Vaccinated. The single most important tool we have is the vaccine, which is highly effective at preventing serious illness, hospitalization and death. If you have questions about the vaccine, please call and ask your medical provider. Vaccine is widely available in Sioux County and is offered at no cost to you.
2. Get Tested. If you or a loved one are experiencing COVID-19 symptoms, get tested as soon as possible. Symptoms may include coughing, shortness of breath, fever, chills, headache, muscle pain, sore throat, or loss of taste or smell. Testing is widely available and free testing is available.
3. Seek Treatment. If you are diagnosed with COVID-19, you may be able to reduce the severity of your symptoms and prevent bad outcomes by seeking treatment before your symptoms become severe. Talk to your health care provider about treatment options.
4. Don’t spread it. If you have COVID-19 like symptoms and are waiting for test results, please stay home and away from others until you have results. If you are diagnosed with COVID-19, please follow guidelines for staying home to prevent others from becoming ill.

For vaccination, testing, and other information about COVID-19 in Sioux County visit www.siouxcovid.org or call Community Health Partners (712) 737-2971 or call your local medical provider.

With the rise in number of new COVID-19 cases across the country, and with the ease with which the Delta variant spreads, Sioux County health care providers ask that all those eligible (anyone 12 and older) seriously consider getting the COVID-19 vaccine to protect themselves and others from serious illness.

The percentage of fully vaccinated individuals living in Sioux County is currently only 33.6%. This leaves many in our county unvaccinated, including the 25% of people age 65 and older who are at highest risk of hospitalization and death related to COVID-19.

Vaccination is the most effective way to prevent serious illness, hospitalization, and death from COVID-19.  Vaccines:

• are highly effective in reducing serious illness, hospitalization, and death in those who are fully vaccinated.
• decrease the opportunity for more variants to develop. When more people are vaccinated, the virus has fewer opportunities to spread and fewer chances to mutate.
• prepare your body to fight the virus to help protect you from serious illness.
• are safe. Scientists have been working on this vaccine technology for 30 years. The vaccines were approved quickly—not because corners in safety or testing were cut. It was only the red tape that typically slows the development process that was cut.
• are readily available and provided at no charge to anyone regardless of their health insurance status. Vaccine is available at all health care providers in the county: Hawarden Regional Health, Hegg Health Center, Orange City Area Health System, Sioux Center Health, and Promise Community Health Center. Vaccine is also available at Hy-Vee, Wal-Mart, and Lewis Drug pharmacies (see siouxcovid.org for details on which vaccines are available at which locations).

Many have questions and concerns about COVID-19 vaccines. Vaccination is a personal choice worth considering— for your own health and for the people you care about. Please reach out to your trusted health care provider or your local public health agency (Community Health Partners) with your questions.  Medical personnel are available and willing to answer questions that will help you make an informed decision.

If you have questions about COVID-19 or vaccinations, contact Community Health Partners at (712) 737-2971, or your health care provider.

With the announcement from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) this morning, the Iowa Department of Public Health (IDPH) has advised that all Iowa vaccine providers pause administration of the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine until more details are confirmed.

The CDC and FDA are reviewing data involving six reported U.S. cases of a rare and severe type of blood clot in individuals after receiving the J&J vaccine. Right now, these adverse events appear to be extremely rare.

All six cases occurred among women between the ages of 18 and 48, and symptoms occurred 6 to 13 days after vaccination.

People who have received the J&J vaccine who develop severe headache, abdominal pain, leg pain, or shortness of breath within three weeks after vaccination should contact their health care provider.

Health care providers are asked to report adverse events to the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System here.

Read the statement issued by the CDC here.

Read the IDPH release here.

CDC and FDA will provide additional information and answer questions later today at a media briefing. A recording of that media call will be available on the FDA’s YouTube channel.

IDPH will provide further updates when more information is available.