A look at Cleveland County through COVID

Cleveland County reached a grave milestone this month, reporting more than 400 people had lost their lives due to COVID-19.

As lives continue to be lost and others altered, The Star caught up with Cleveland County Deputy Health Director DeShay Oliver to look at where we are as a community and the journey that got us here.

Here's a Q&A with Oliver:

Q: Why do you think Cleveland County's numbers aren't trending well right now?

A: Cleveland County, not unlike many other counties across North Carolina, is currently experiencing an increase in new daily COVID-19 cases. This can likely be attributed to many events, activities, businesses and lifestyles returning to normal or “business as usual” operations without preventive measures in place. Furthermore, Cleveland County lags behind the state in COVID-19 vaccination rates with 51% of county residents vaccinated with two doses or one dose of Johnson &Johnson versus 62% for North Carolina.

In Cleveland County, 26% of residents have received one booster or additional dose versus 56% for the state. The good news is, despite the increase in cases, Cleveland County is not currently experiencing a major increase in severe illness, hospitalizations, and deaths from COVID-19 likely due to the combination of individuals who are vaccinated and those who have a level of natural immunity from a prior infection.

Q: What seems to be the overall attitude regarding the virus and safety measures now versus a year or two years ago?

A: Overall, our general community does not seem to be as concerned about COVID-19 now as they were a year or two ago. Over the past week, we have averaged a total of 27 new cases a day, which is likely highly under reported due to the level at home tests being conducted that do not get reported. There was a time when 27 new cases in a day was perceived as very high, and there was a significant level of concern. However, much has changed since that time with the availability of vaccine, treatment for high-risk individuals, and a level of natural immunity among many.

The most prominent Omicron variants we are currently seeing, while still highly transmissible, do not seem to cause as severe of illness with symptoms being primarily upper respiratory rather than lower respiratory like we saw with earlier variants. While we do, unfortunately, continue to have individuals hospitalized from COVID-19, our hospital and healthcare system capacity is good currently. However, we should continue to be mindful of and practice preventive strategies around individuals at an increased risk of severe illness.

Q: How is the county offering vaccines now verses at the height of the pandemic?

A: The Cleveland County Health Department began administering the COVID vaccine through community drive-thru events throughout the county beginning on Jan. 14, 2021. We transitioned to regular drive-thru COVID vaccine events at the Cleveland County fairgrounds beginning in February 2021 and continued to operate from the fairgrounds until the end of May 2021, at which time we transitioned to offering the COVID vaccine through our regular in-house vaccine clinic at the health department. In addition to offering the vaccine at the health department, we continued to host pop-up vaccine clinics at businesses and churches throughout the county well into August 2021.

Today, the COVID vaccine and COVID testing continues to be available at the Cleveland County Health Department by appointment by calling 980-484-6019. The COVID vaccine and testing is also available in Cleveland County through other healthcare providers and some pharmacies.

Q. Where does the county stand on getting second boosters?

A. Data is not yet available on the number/percentage of individuals who have received their second booster. The second booster is available at the Cleveland County Health Department by calling 980-484-6019 to schedule an appointment. The CDC recommends boosters for eligible recipients which includes all adults ages 50 years and older and people ages 12 years and older who are moderately or severely immunocompromised.

Q: What would you say about the impact COVID has had on the community as far as deaths, illness and physical/mental health?

Since our first local case in 2020, 404 Cleveland County residents have died from COVID-19 and far more have been hospitalized or extremely ill. It has likely had a significant impact on every person in our community in some way from loss of loved ones, to illness, to job insecurity, to access to essential resources such as child care, food, health care, education, and more.

While conditions have improved and many people’s lives may feel as though they have returned to normal, I think we have yet to see the full impact of COVID-19 and its long-term impact on factors such as mental health, substance use and even the physical health implications of post-COVID conditions, often referred to as “long COVID” or “long-haulers.”

This article originally appeared on The Shelby Star: Cleveland County tops 404 dead from COVID; a Q&A with health official