(Above, clockwise from top left): Melody Cannon-Cutts, Public Health Program Manager, Del Norte County Department of Health and Human Services; Terry Supahan, Executive Director, Del Norte & Tribal Lands True North Organizing Network; Miguel Pelayo-Zepeda, Del Norte-based community outreach organizer; Thayallen Gensaw, Del Norte high school student; Daphne Corstese-Lambert, Director of Del Norte Mission Possible, Del Norte Senior Center; Khou Vue, teacher and Hmong Cultural Center Board member. (EMS)

 

In California’s rural Del Norte county, vaccination rates are among the lowest in the state and the rapid spread of the Covid19 delta variant has sent infection rates spiraling. Located amidst the majestic redwood forests bordering the Pacific coast in the Northwest corner of California, Del Norte is a microcosm for what it takes to promote vaccines to diverse populations in remote rural regions with limited communication infrastructures.

In an EMS press briefing on Aug. 27, panelists – Melody M. Cannon-Cutts, Public Health Program Manager, Del Norte County Dept. of Health and Human Services; Terry Supahan, Executive Director, Del Norte & Tribal Lands True North Organizing Network, member of the Karuk tribe; Miguel Pelayo-Zepeda, community outreach organizer with Latinx farmworkers, Smith River; Khou Vue, Hmong Cultural Center Board member, teacher; Daphne Corstese-Lambert, Director, Del Norte Mission Possible, a project of the Del Norte Senior Center, outreach to rural homeless population; and Thayallen Gensaw, Del Norte high school student, member of Yurok tribe – share successes and challenges of vaccinating a highly dispersed, predominantly rural population with significant numbers of Latinx farmworkers; members of the Yurok and Karuk tribes; a tightly knit Hmong community; homeless people – including many vets – living alone in the woods or on the streets of Crescent City.

Melody Cannon-Cutts, Public Health Program Manager, Del Norte County Dept. of Health and Human Services, started with a geographic and demographic description of Del Norte county, “We have a population of about 28,000, we also have Pelican Bay state prison which can house up to 5,000 inmates. Del Norte is a rural county with one incorporated town Crescent City.”

There is only one hospital in the entire county, Center Coast Hospital, with a total bed count of about 60. The hospital has converted some of these beds recently for ICU services, resulting in about 11 ICU beds all of which currently are in use.

Del Norte county began monitoring the pandemic in February 2020 and did not identify its first positive case until April 2020.

The county had their first real surge in November and December 2020.

Until very recently, Del Norte has experienced low hospitalizations, with five deaths until April 2021.

Following the reopening of the state in June 2021 and after the July 4th holiday positive cases jumped from 23 to 90 in July alone. Currently, positive cases are at 341.

The county began providing the vaccine in December 2020 to health care workers and first responders. By April 2021, it was widely available throughout the county and for all those in their respective age groups.

Vaccinated rates still remain low in comparison to the rest of California, currently at 43.6 percent. The county is experiencing significant vaccine hesitancy in their community. Most of the current hospitalizations occur in unvaccinated persons.

The health officer imposed a masking mandate, recommending increased social distancing and strongly discouraged large gatherings, recently.

The county continues to bring education about the vaccines including the recent FDA approval for Pfizer. Reducing fear and myth and getting those residents who are sitting on the fence to getting the vaccine are crucial.

Various organizations and volunteers joined hands with the county to provide ways to get the population vaccinated. A mobile vaccine clinic was brought to Alexander Dairy to get people vaccinated during their lunch break. Voluntary translation help was made available to address any questions.

In these close knit communities, the main goal and upbringing is to always pass on the cultural knowledge to the future generations, and in order for that to happen, they know, one needs to live to be able to share.

Whether it is a community of Hispanics, Hmong, or the Indian Tribes, to embrace a long life that ensures the cultural beliefs and rituals are passed on to the next generation without disruption, Del Norte county residents have to overcome their fear of the vaccine, trust the government and health officials, and get vaccinated today.

Vaccination is the only foreseeable way to deal with the problem of Covid 19.