dphillips@post-journal.com
FILE - In this March 10, 2021, file photo, people wait in line at the check-in area to enter the United Center mass COVID-19 vaccination site in Chicago. U.S. deaths from COVID-19 are falling again as the nation recovers from the devastating winter surge. Most forecasts predict coronavirus deaths will fall further in coming weeks, as more people are vaccinated. (AP Photo/Shafkat Anowar, File)
Everyone had to make adjustments following the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Like it or not, some of those adjustments might be permanent though some might be for the better.
One of the changes made is the switch to telehealth where people can speak to their family physician or doctors online instead of in-person. Dr. Elizabeth Kidder, The Chautauqua Center medical provider, said telehealth will be a permanent change to health care and medical culture, which is a direct result of the pandemic.
The Associated Press
NEW YORK Add travel to the activities vaccinated Americans can safely enjoy again, according to new U.S. guidance issued Friday.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention updated its guidance to say fully vaccinated people can travel within the U.S. without getting tested for the coronavirus or going into quarantine afterward.
Still, CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky urged caution and said she would “advocate against general travel overall” given the rising number of infections.
“If you are vaccinated, it is lower risk,” she said.
According to the CDC, more than 100 million people in the U.S. or about 30% of the population have received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine. A person is considered fully vaccinated two weeks after receiving the last required dose.
etichy@post-journal.com
A COVID-19 vaccination clinic is set to take place Tuesday at the State University of New York at Fredonia. Two pop-up clinics will be held in Irving and Gowanda.
P-J file photo
Three COVID-19 vaccination clinics are set to take place next week toward the north end of the county.
Two pop-up clinics, one in Irving and the other in Gowanda, will be held Wednesday, Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced. In all, 18 community-based clinics inside houses of worship, community centers and gathering spaces as well as local businesses are planned for sites across New York state.
One of the clinics will be held from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Native Pride Travel Plaza, 11359 Southwestern Blvd., Irving. The other will take place at the Gowanda Fire Hall, 230 Aldrich St., from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
dphillips@post-journal.com
Zion Covenant Church, located at 520 Fairmount Ave., Jamestown, will be holding an additional Easter Sunday church service.
P-J photo by Dennis Phillips
After no in-person Easter church services last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, churches are preparing to welcome parishioners back this Sunday.
The Rev. Luke Fodor at St. Luke’s Episcopal Church, located at 410 N. Main St., Jamestown, said this Easter will be notably special following an unsettling year with church goers slowly returning to in-person services.
“Easter is one of those times where we want to celebrate both the spring and the power of possibility,” he said. “During these times of the new normal, which will be different this year with all of us wearing mask, Easter has always presented to us a new normal the power of resurrection.”
adolce@observertoday.com
Chautauqua Nursing & Rehabilitation Center has received three deficiency-free infection control surveys from the department of health.
Since a COVID-19 outbreak at the beginning of the year, the Chautauqua Nursing & Rehabilitation Center has done its best to recover and adapt.
The coronavirus infected dozens of residents within the facility and around 70% of the staff. But in the months since, and since the pandemic began, the CNRC has taken as many steps as possible to ensure safety for residents and staff.
“Since March of 2020, our team has faced unprecedented hurdles to which they have responded with ingenuity, determination and selflessness,” said Dawn Harsch, spokeswoman for VestraCare and the Chautauqua Nursing & Rehabilitation Center. “For more than a year, we have worked hand-in-hand with the department of health to incorporate aggressive infection control measures, screening practices, PPE use, vaccination administration and advanced clean