Howard County Quorum Court Meets For March

The Howard County Quorum Court’s March meeting yesterday included a COVID-19 update from Howard County Health Department director Donna Webb and Howard Memorial Hospital administrator Debra Wright.

At the time of her presentation, Webb said the statewide number of cases in Arkansas had risen to 22 with a majority of those being in central Arkansas. Webb said most of the confirmed cases were connected to the original case from Jefferson County. Unlike the flu virus, Webb said the COVID-19 virus hasn’t shown signs of diminishing in warm weather.

Hospital Administrator Debra Wright said her facility has plans in place to treat patients who have the virus. The I.C.U. area of the hospital would serve as a ward for Corona Virus patients. While the hospital has implemented restrictions on how people enter the facility, she said there are no current plans to ban visitors. However, should the virus begin affecting Howard County, neighboring counties or possibly the Texarkana area, Wright said some type of visitor ban might be put in place. She said hospital employees are undergoing health checks and the cafeteria has removed all self serve food items from the dining area.

Both Wright and Webb stressed hand washing and keeping distance from others as ways to help prevent spreading the virus or any sickness from person to person. They also reminded everyone that if a person suspects they could have the COVID-19 virus, they should call their physician’s office or the hospital before arriving.