Story and photos by Darl Devault, Feature Writer

Some outdoor activities come with social distancing, such as hiking, kayaking, bicycling, while Jeeping is an everyone activity because your effort is as simple as driving. Jeeping offers the automatic added benefit of a COVID-19 safe recreational outing enforcing social distancing.
You can travel far to Jeep off-road or as close as nearby country roads. At Outdoor Powersports Offroad Park at Crossbar Ranch near Davis, Okla., drivers have many trails to choose from within the 6,500-acre park. While touring road and trails of Crossbar’s granite canyons you realize there are many places to enjoy being outdoors away from people.
Edmond, Okla. resident, and retiree, Rob Walker, 65, wants to increase his Jeep activity. He explains you do not have to rule the off-road world. You can simply take advantage of what it offers, immersion in nature and social distancing. He insists seniors who take up the 4-wheeling off-road lifestyle will likely continue it long after vaccines make traveling safe again.
“Isolated in your vehicle, a person driving a Jeep cannot get close to anyone without intending to get close,” Walker said. “I took a five state Jeep tour in June to Moab Utah with caution, finding if you camped in the outback you had to consciously work to get within social distance of someone. This, and it being the area’s offseason, made it safe to have a wonderful outing.”
Jeep travel and exploring provides enthusiasts with plenty of opportunities for recreation. Seniors looking for a zero COVID-19 risk reality on vacation can enjoy camping and the outdoors. (Story continued below)

From the increased sale of four-wheel drive off-road vehicles, insiders say this contingent of outdoor enthusiasts has been growing fast for many years.
Although magazine and television ads often portray Jeep owners as young and affluent, many retirement privileged seniors are learning the skills needed to enjoy what many see as rugged car camping.
Jeeping, also called off-road four wheeling, is the predominant name for the activity in America. Every year new enthusiasts create more demand for the continued strong growth in the already phenomenally large number of places to go off road.
Although you will occasionally see high-end Jeeps on the trails, the usual choice for locals is stock models These have enticed many new adventurers into the sport.
They enjoy the feel of control over rough roads. Jeeps allow them the stability and ease of getting up and over rugged obstacles. Every area has trails of with varying degrees of difficulty.
These off-road activities began soon after WWII with advances in the machinery became high tech. This has revolutionized the quality and lowered the need to be outstanding drivers for the recreational Jeeper. Jeeping provides opportunities for all ages, shapes, and sizes of folks, no matter their physical ability or driving level.
Jeeps have gone from being bare bones, WWII surplus workhorses, to having versatile number of uses. Many Jeeps are now used for a weekend, week, or longer, self-supported camping trip in the rugged parts of America.
Although using the word Jeep because they are often called Jeep trails, readers need to know many vehicles are every bit as rugged. Honda Ridgeline, Chevy Blazer, Honda Element, Toyota 4Runner, Subaru Outback, and Nissan Pathfinder, just to name a few, will work just as well.
All these rugged vehicles are easy to maneuver and stable. They all provide the feeling of being in control of something that glides effortlessly through the outdoors. This gives even the newbie the confidence to slip into the seat and go off road.
With all the automobile builders offering Web sites with tours of their products, you can comparison shop. Look around, do not buy the first vehicle you try.
For seniors, the attraction of doing what they have been doing for five decades or so, driving, has prompted many to try the sport now.
Everyone knows how to drive. Seniors can create haunting memories of their adventurous experiences off road, immersed in nature and enjoying the comforts of home while camping in the evening. The vehicle allows for the effortless hauling of all the camping gear needed to make a campsite as comfortable as you care to make it. Remember, you are not backpacking. You can bring along a small generator to combine the experience of camping with a little glamor and you have Glamping with spatial distancing.
If you choose to rent a Jeep at your adventure area, you can still pack your vehicle full of camping luxury for transfer at the rental site.
If you are brand new to the world of glamorous camping, search the Internet for ideas. In a world where public transportation is being shunned for its tight quarters with other people, you are in charge of who and how you associate with others.
“I advise anyone planning to go off road and camp in an area to first go online to the many web sites detailing the area and weather predictions,” Walker said. “Our national weather service provides this info to help promote its weather awareness agenda.”
Walker says fellow seniors who go off road need to slow down, let some air out of the tires at your destination to make the going smoother and admire the scenery.
As newcomers to the activity, many seniors can easily find out if they enjoy Jeeping by renting one for a day trip.
Seniors are living longer and have time to do things. Retirement is a time to explore. Figure out if this activity interests you. Is this how you want to spend your free time?
Walker recommends that seniors set some short-term goals and be thinking about their long-term goals. The short-term can be a trip to Crossbar. The long-term is perhaps a multi-day trip to Big Bend National Park at our southern border in Texas. You can think of both simultaneously.
All the major Jeep destinations offer Web sites describing rentals and trails. Canyonlands Jeep Adventures provides a complete overview of the sport. The U.S. National Park Service has a site allowing you find a place to go car camping and can help you get permits for certain camping spots.
Ending on a safety point, when in doubt, back out! If you are traveling on a trail or trying to maneuver around something that you are not comfortable with, do not do it. For more information visit www.rideyourlifestyle.com.

Story and photos by Darl Devault, Feature Writer

Seniors athletes have reached a point in their lives where they are resilient and persistent. Because of early morning fog those were certainly the watchwords for the recent Oklahoma Senior Games cycling events October 10 held at Lake Stanley Draper October.
Athletes train to peak for big events. A resilient athlete is tested when they need to train through a date they have set on their calendar to again attempt a peak performance a month later. The whole series of statewide events that make up the Oklahoma Senior Games were pushed back a full month because of concerns over COVID-19.
The 60 senior cyclists who gathered the morning of the event displayed even more persistence and resilience as they waited through a two-hour fog delay before starting their events. (Story continues below)

For athletes who got up early to eat properly to begin racing at 8 a.m., this two-hour delay made it even tougher to perform at their best.
One new-to-the-Senior-Games racer made all the right adjustments. Terri Stadler went pedal stroke to pedal stroke over the hilly terrain with the men to win the 44K road race women’s division. The Edmond resident showed she is a well-conditioned and experienced racer. She dominated her new 60-64 age range to stay in the lead pack until the final sprint with male racers from many adjoining states.
Many of the cyclists who started in a mass start travelled from out of state to qualify for the November 5-18, 2021 National Senior Games to be presented by Humana in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. The 50 and over bicycle racers were hoping to place first through fourth place at this year’s games so they could qualify for those Nationals.
“Oklahoma offers many of these of riders racing today a chance to qualify for nationals because several states have cancelled their events because of the concerns of COVID 19,” said Kathleen Fitzgerald, OSG state director. “It is surprising at first, how far they will travel to qualify for nationals, until you talk to them. Then you realize these are really competitive older folks who want to stay fit year-round as cyclists.”
The 22K and 44K road races drew the most contestants at Draper, while the 5K and 10K time trial events also saw many of the same road racers participate.
For the time trials, many rode expensive specialty time trial bikes. They began their race against the clock in one-minute intervals. Starting order was from youngest to oldest starting with males and ending with females.
The events observed U.S.A Cycling rules. The races went off without any wrecks or mishaps throughout the day.
In the time trial events, riders were not allowed to draft (take pace behind another rider) closer than 25 meters ahead, or two meters to the side. If anyone had broken this rule, they would have received a time penalty.
Both road race distances and the two time trail distances offered dual opportunity for qualifying for nationals. Again, qualifying in any event at the 2020 event earned the athletes the right to compete at Nationals in 2021.
The Games this year provide 27 sports venues, some with variations, which offer athletic training opportunities and social interaction. Along with the competitions, the Games supply healthy lifestyle educational information for seniors.
In a recent article published by the Harvard Medical School’s Harvard Health online, bicycling is described as providing important physical benefits. First, it is an aerobic workout, which for seniors is the heart of any health plan, pun intended. Cycling, therefore, is good for their heart, brain and blood vessels.
Cycling is easy on joints, Dr. Safran Norton says in the article. He says that unlike walking, cycling is good for anyone with joint paint or age-related stiffness.
Bicyclists use their largest muscle group, the legs, which helps them build muscle while toning other muscles needed to keep them balanced and steer the bicycle.
These benefits carry over into everyday activities while helping cyclists build bone density, says Dr. Norton.
Greater Fort Lauderdale, Florida will host the 2021 National Senior Games, the largest multi-sport championship event in the world for adults 50 and over. More than 10,000 qualified athletes, accompanied by an estimated 15,000 visitors, are expected to compete in 20 medal sports in 2021.
The National Senior Games, begun in 1987, has 54 affiliated qualifying member games in North America promoting wellness and active, healthy lifestyles for older adults.
The Oklahoma Senior Games grew to more than 1,000 50+ athletes last year. Two Native American nations joined sponsors to help to conduct the many activities needed to allow the Games to run smoothly September through October. The Chickasaw and Cherokee Nations are underwriting the Games for the first time in 2020.
The Games promote healthy lifestyles for seniors through education, fitness with the spirited competition of sports and recreational games. This goes along with inspiring everyone to embrace health while enjoying the value of sports related exercise.

Getting a flu vaccine during 2020-2021 is more important than ever because of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Flu vaccination is especially important for people who are at high risk for the flu; many of whom are also at high risk for COVID-19.
It has been recognized for many years that people 65 years and older have a greater chance of developing serious complications from the flu compared to young, healthy adults. This risk is due in part to changes in immune defenses with increasing age. While flu seasons vary in severity, during most seasons, people in this age group bear the greatest burden of severe flu disease. The same can be said for COVID-19.
But age is not the only risk factor. Adults of any age with any of the underlying medical conditions listed below are also at increased risk.
Asthma and COPD – Heart disease – Diabetes – Chronic kidney disease – Liver disease – Cancer – Pregnancy – Obesity – Smoking/History of smoking
People with these types of conditions, and those who are immunocompromised for other reasons, are more susceptible of developing serious complications from the flu. Many of these conditions also increase the likelihood for serious outcomes from COVID-19.
If you fall in the high-risk category, vaccination is especially important. When you get vaccinated for the flu, you reduce your risk of getting sick and possibly being hospitalized or even dying. In turn, by staying healthy this flu season, you help conserve potentially scarce health care resources needed to help those battling COVID-19. Click here for more flu-related information.

OU Health, Mercy and SSM Health St. Anthony are teaming up with 100 of the nation’s top hospitals and healthcare systems to deliver an urgent plea for all Americans: Mask up, because wearing a facemask is the best chance at slowing the surging COVID-19 pandemic.
More than 11 million Americans have tested positive for the virus – including an additional 1 million in just the past week – leading to 245,000 deaths. In Oklahoma, nearly 160,000 people have been infected by the virus and more than 1,500 people have died. Last week, Oklahoma saw a 74.8% increase in cases over the week before, according to data from the Oklahoma State Department of Health.

“We’re seeing more COVID-19 patients than ever coming into our emergency departments in desperate need of care but we are running out of room,” said Jim Gebhart, Community President of Mercy Oklahoma Communities. “We have to reduce the exponential increase of community spread before it’s too late.”
“The nation’s top hospitals and healthcare systems are partnering at this crucial time to deliver a unified message: Wear a mask to slow the surge of COVID-19,” said Chuck Spicer, President and CEO of OU Medicine, which is part of OU Health. “We urge people across Oklahoma and the nation to do their part to decrease the spread of COVID-19. This is a time when we must all join together to defeat a virus that is taking far too many lives.”
“As caregivers, our mission is to care for all patients with all conditions at all levels of care, but our hospitals are at maximum capacity,” stated Joe Hodges, Regional President, SSM Health Oklahoma. “We coordinate daily to create capacity where we can, but we are running out of ways to do that. We need the community’s help to support our valued physicians and nurses on the frontlines by wearing a mask to stay safe and reduce the infection rates.”

In this joint campaign, OU Health, Mercy and SSM Health and the nation’s top healthcare systems emphasize that current trends in the pandemic are daunting and frightening. If the nation stays on its current course, hospital leaders are increasingly concerned that more healthcare facilities will be overwhelmed as shortages of healthy caregivers make it difficult to handle a rapidly increasing number of patients. Unfortunately, this is already happening in parts of the country.
“The next several months will be critical,” Spicer said on behalf of the campaign. “Although there has been positive news about vaccine development, no one knows when those vaccines will be ready for widespread use. In the meantime, everyone must remain vigilant, take precautions and follow public health orders. The country has reached a tipping point. The power to do what is right is now in the hands of everyone everywhere.”
Beginning today, OU Health, Mercy and SSM Health St. Anthony join their national partners in sharing public service messages for the #MaskUp Campaign. In addition to messaging across Oklahoma, the #MaskUp campaign will be featured in The New York Times, USA Today, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post and The Los Angeles Times.
The message reads:
“As the top nationally ranked hospitals, we know it’s tough that we all need to do our part and keep wearing masks. But, here’s what we also know: The science has not changed. Masks slow the spread of COVID-19. So, please join us as we all embrace this simple ask: Wear. Care. Share with #MaskUp. Together, wearing is caring. And together, we are saving lives.”
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention points to recent studies that have shown facemasks successfully limit spread of the COVID-19 virus. Wearing facemasks protect in two key ways: by protecting the wearer against inhalation of harmful pathogens and particulates and by preventing exposure of those around the wearer.
In addition to masking, the CDC suggests that everyone minimize the number of non-household contacts, maintain a physical distance of at least 6 feet, and limit the amount of time around others, especially while indoors and in poorly ventilated areas.
For further information about masking guidelines and the #MaskUp campaign, visit EveryMaskUp.com.

Groundbreaking Spiro Exhibition to Debut at The National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum

The Spiro site contained one of the greatest collections of prehistoric American Indian artifacts ever discovered in the United

The Spiro Mounds are one of the United States’ most important ancient Native American sites, as well as an archaeological find unmatched in modern times. Yet, despite creating a sophisticated ancient culture, the Spiro people are nearly forgotten in the pages of history books. How did these incredible works of art and other treasures from all over North America end up hidden for hundreds of years, and why? Opening February 12, 2021 at the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum, “Spiro and the Art of the Mississippian World” will seek to answer these questions and more in the first major presentation on the Spiro Mounds ever undertaken by a museum, representing the first, and possibly last, time these artifacts will be reunited from various collections across the country.
“We are incredibly pleased to announce this unparalleled exhibition, which will give proper honor and representation to the culture and historical impact of the Spiro people,” said Natalie Shirley, The Cowboy president and CEO. “Our staff has worked for years to create a world-class, exciting and collaborative presentation of a people who have been overlooked for too long.”

This exhibition will share the art, history and culture of the Spiro people through approx. 175 objects, as well as an accompanying publication, website, public symposium and panel discussion. It was created in collaboration with representatives from the Caddo and Wichita Nations, the descendants of the Spiroan people, and with contributions by 17 humanities scholars from nearly a dozen universities and museums from across the United States.
The Spiro Mounds were the location of one of the largest and longest episodes of looting at any American archaeological site in history—comparable to that of Mesa Verde in Colorado and, sadly, several others across the country. Both looting and New Deal/Works Progress Administration (WPA) archaeological excavations came together in a near-perfect storm at Spiro. In 1935, the public’s imagination was peaked when the Kansas City Star called the site’s discovery a “King Tut’s Tomb in the Arkansas Valley,” and identified it as the greatest source of Mississippian iconographic material ever found. Embossed copper plates, wooden sculptures, thousands of pearls and beads, large human effigy pipes and engraved shell gorgets and cups are just some of the items found at Spiro. In fact, nearly 90% of all known engraved shell created during the Mississippian period (900 – 1650 AD) was discovered at this one site. This exhibition will include the reunification of a range of items looted and archaeologically excavated at Spiro that have not been together since the early 1930s and 1940s. (story continues below)

“The quality and quantity of material found in at Spiro is unprecedented,” said Eric Singleton, Ph.D., Museum Curator of Ethnology. “We are grateful to have the support of the Spiroan descendants, the Caddo Nation and the Wichita and Affiliated Tribes, as we prepare this exhibition. Without them, this exhibition would not be possible.” The Spiroan people, along with other Mississippian groups across the eastern half of North America, created a world equal to that of the Aztec, Maya or Inca, consisting of trade networks and highly developed social, political and religious centers. The exhibition will explore the archaeology and history of Spiro and its relationship to other contemporaneous Indigenous communities in North and Central America, highlighting community development, religious and ceremonial activities, farming and hunting practices and daily life. It will also illustrate how ecological factors, specifically the occurrence of the “Little Ice Age” beginning in 1350 AD and lasting until 1650 AD may have led to the site’s decline and ultimate abandonment. The exhibition also showcases contemporary Indigenous art pieces that explore the ideas of origin and connect the art and artistry of the Spiro people to their modern descendants.
Following the exhibition, the online component and educational materials will be available on the Museum’s website and in our permanent Native American gallery. In addition, the Museum will give both the Caddo and Wichita Nations all interpretative materials to use at their discretion in their respective tribal museums.
The exhibition will debut at National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum February 12 – May 9, 2021, before traveling to the Birmingham Museum of Art (October 5, 2021 – March 11, 2022) in Birmingham Alabama, and the Dallas Museum of Art (April 15, 2022 – August 5, 2022), in Dallas Texas.
The Spiro and the Art of the Mississippian World has been made possible in part by major grants from the National Endowment for the Humanities and the Henry Luce Foundation, as well as support from the Kirkpatrick Foundation.
Any views, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this press release do not necessarily represent those of the National Endowment for the Humanities.
About the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum
The National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma City is America’s premier institution of Western history, art and culture. Founded in 1955, the Museum collects, preserves and exhibits an internationally renowned collection of Western art and artifacts while sponsoring dynamic educational programs to stimulate interest in the enduring legacy of the American West. For more information, visit nationalcowboymuseum.org.

Dear Savvy Senior,

Writing a will has never been a high priority to me but this lingering coronavirus crisis has changed my thinking. Can you recommend some good do-it-yourself resources to help me write a simple will?

Getting Older

Dear Getting,
The coronavirus crisis has changed the way a lot of people look at things, including wills. Currently, fewer than half of American adults have prepared a will. But having a last will and testament is important because it ensures that your money and property will be distributed to the people you want to receive it after your death.
If you die without a will, your estate will be settled in accordance with state law. Details vary by state, but assets typically are distributed using a hierarchy of survivors. Assets go to first to a spouse, then to children, then your siblings, and so on.
You also need to be aware that certain accounts take precedence over a will. If you jointly own a home or a bank account, for example, the house, and the funds in the account, will go to the joint holder, even if your will directs otherwise. Similarly, retirement accounts and life insurance policies are distributed to the beneficiaries you designate, so it is important to keep them up to date too.
Online Will Makers
If you have a simple, straightforward estate and an uncomplicated family situation, writing your own will – with the help of a good online will making program – is a viable alternative to hiring an attorney and much cheaper. Like tax software, these online tools will guide you through a series of questions and will insert your answers into a will for you, and it usually takes less that 20 minutes from start to finish.
Three top-rated do-it-yourself options include the Quicken WillMaker & Trust 2021 downloadable software (available at nolo.com) that costs $100 and works with Windows and Macs and is valid in every state except Louisiana; LegalZoom (legalzoom.com), which offers basic wills for $89 or $99 if you’d like assistance from an independent attorney; and Trust & Will (trustandwill.com) which charges $89 for a basic will.
If that’s more than you’re willing to pay, consider FreeWill (freewill.com), which is a completely free will making resource made possible with the support of nonprofit organizations.
When to Hire a Lawyer
If you have considerable financial assets or a complex family situation, like a blended family or child with special needs, it would be smart for you to seek professional advice. An experienced lawyer can make sure you cover all your bases, which can help avoid family confusion and squabbles after you’re gone.
The National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys (naela.org) and the National Association of Estate Planners & Councils (naepc.org) websites are good resources that have directories to help you find someone in your area.
Costs will vary depending on your location and the complexity of your situation, but you can expect to pay somewhere between $200 and $1,000 to get your will made. To help you save, shop around and get price quotes from several different firms. And before you meet with an attorney, make a detailed list of your assets and accounts to help make your visit more efficient.
Make it Valid
Be aware that to make your will valid, you must sign and date it and have it witnessed according to the laws of your state. Most states require two witnesses who are not listed as beneficiaries in your will to watch you sign it. Some states also require that a notary witness the signing as well. Nationalnotary.org can tell you if a notary is needed to legalize a will in your state, if remote notary services are available, and how to access such online services to execute your will if you are sheltering at home during the pandemic.

Send your senior questions to: Savvy Senior, P.O. Box 5443, Norman, OK 73070, or visit SavvySenior.org. Jim Miller is a contributor to the NBC Today show and author of “The Savvy Senior” book.

Hospice nurse grateful to help COVID-19 patients

Story and photo by James Coburn, Feature Writer

Candy O’Neal’s biggest challenge in today’s nursing environment of COVID-19 has been the transition of caring for home-bound patients to those living out their final days in a nursing home, she said. She had to give up her previous patients up to another nurse to only work in one facility.
But O’Neal is used to being flexible in her career with a history in medical surgical care, emergency room care, and clinical nursing. Hospice is all about comfort and quality of life.
“Right now to me, this COVID stuff has kind of put people into a depression,” said O’Neal, RN case manager at Companion Hospice in Guthrie.
O’Neal understands the need to quarantine COVID patients to a room. But it has caused them more weight loss and cognitive changes. (Story continues below)

“It’s not getting out in the dining areas — not getting to have activities — not seeing their loved ones. Having a parent or a child come visit through a window that you can’t open is not the same. They’re lacking that though, and so that’s been pretty hard on them.”
O’Neal wouldn’t change being a nurse. She knows that she is making a difference in life the best she can. Helping families cope with their loved ones facing a terminal illness is heartfelt for O’Neal.
“This team here works well together. We all get along — all of us. And that’s hard to find,” said O’Neal, who has worked as Companion hospice nurse for nearly three years.
A friend of hers who is now a nurse practitioner had been trying to recruit O’Neal to Companion for a couple of years before she accepted an interview. At first she was hesitant to accept being a hospice nurse who answers families’ hard questions about an impending death. After three weeks she accepted her new journey in life.
“Something just told me to do it,” she said. “And so I did, and honestly this has been the best decision I’ve made. It changed my outlook on life. I feel like I’m the one that feels rewarded from this. It kind of makes me emotional. I feel like we both end up at peace if that makes sense.”
Oftentimes people ask O’Neal how she endures being a hospice nurse every day. She is helping people make a transition in life during a profound time of need in their lives.
“I’m helping them comfortably pass over. But you not only care for the patient — you care for the families a lot,” she explained. “We do a lot of close interaction with the families.”
Helping families brings a continuity of care that O’Neal cherishes. She learns so much about their lives and what brought them to their present point in life, she said.
Hospice care does not focus on waiting for a family member to pass on. It’s more of a celebration of life and what life has meant. The nurses meet their patients in whatever state of mind they are experiencing in life.
There are some patients that she has had a few years. They are re-certified for hospice as long as they continue to decline, she said.
“I get really attached to my patients. It’s hard not to,” O’Neal said. “But it’s almost like losing a family member. You get close to them when you see them two or three times a week, and then as the disease progresses you may see them every day.”
Her endurance in being a nurse stems from when she decided to become a nurse during her early twenties. She was studying to become a veterinarian when her grandparents became sick. She was told her grandfather was dying of cancer.
“I thought I already like doing it for animals. I think I want to do it for people,” she said.
O’Neal was auditing courses in nursing school when her grandfather passed away. She took a break from her nursing studies after he died and earned a Bachelor of Science degree in veterinary school. She had a baby. Her family needed her, so she shifted her career to work as a medical assistant in the office of Dr. Todd Krehbiel, who persuaded her to go back to school to earn a nursing degree. She went on to earn a Bachelor of Science degree in nursing at Langston University.
During the holiday season, O’Neal says she is thankful for life itself and that her family and friends are all healthy during a time of uncertainty.
“Right now, it’s uncertain even though we wear masks everywhere, you still don’t know,” she said. “I’d say I’m grateful for holidays but I’m really just thankful for life because right now there’s a lot of people that are struggling.”

INTEGRIS General Surgery Yukon is proud to welcome Jason Brown, M.D., to the team.
Brown received his medical degree from the University of Oklahoma College of Medicine and completed his General Surgery Residency at Marshall University in Huntington, West Virginia. He finished his Fellowship in Surgical Critical Care at the University of Hawaii, Queens Medical Center. He is a member of the American College of Surgeons, Society of Critical Care Medicine and the American Medical Association.
“The most gratifying part of what I do is having the opportunity to offer a surgical solution to a person with a surgical need and having the privilege of witnessing the positive impact on their life.”
His areas of interest include: Laparoscopic surgery, endocrine surgery, hernia surgery, colorectal surgery, breast surgery and gallbladder surgery. Brown offices at INTEGRIS General Surgery Yukon, 1205 Health Center Parkway, Suite 100, in Yukon. Call 405-717-5400 for more information or to make an appointment.

Calls Continue For Congress To Replenish Emergency Funding For Hospitals And Long Term Care Facilities And For States To Take Additional Measures To Control Community Spread

The American Health Care Association and National Center for Assisted Living (AHCA/NCAL), representing more than 14,000 nursing homes and assisted living communities across the country that provide care to approximately five million people each year, released a report today showing nursing homes in the U.S. continue to see a record number of weekly new cases this month due to the community spread among the general population, surpassing previous peaks since the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) started tracking cases in nursing homes.

Recent data released by Johns Hopkins University and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) show that with the recent spike in new COVID cases in the general U.S. population, weekly nursing home cases are also on the rise. According to Johns Hopkins University, weekly new COVID cases in the general U.S. population rose by 229 percent to 796,761 new cases the week of November 8. A correlating uptick in new cases in nursing homes occurred when cases in the surrounding community started rising back in mid-September.
As experts have repeatedly noted, COVID-19 cases in a surrounding community is a top factor in outbreaks in nursing homes. University of Chicago’s Tamara Konetzka, a nationally recognized expert on long-term care, recently said, “Trying to protect nursing home residents without controlling community spread is a losing battle.” Dr. David Grabowski, professor of Health Care Policy, Harvard Medical School recently stated, “The strongest predictor of whether or not we’ll see cases in [a particular setting] is community spread.”
“Our worst fears have come true as COVID runs rampant among the general population, and long term care facilities are powerless to fully prevent it from entering due to its asymptomatic and pre-symptomatic spread,” stated Mark Parkinson, President and CEO of AHCA/NCAL. “Our health care heroes are doing everything they can to prevent it from spreading further, but this level of COVID nationwide puts serious strain on our workforce, supplies, and testing capacity. If everybody would wear a mask and social distance to reduce the level of COVID in the community, we know we would dramatically reduce these rates in long term care facilities.”

During the second week of November, nearly half (49 percent) of new COVID cases in nursing homes were from Midwest states with major spikes in community spread in the upper parts of the region. As a result, the Midwest region saw a 275 percent increase in weekly COVID cases in nursing homes since mid-September.
After seven weeks of declining cases in nursing homes through mid-September, nursing home cases began to increase as nearly all 50 states have started to see rising levels of COVID cases. New weekly cases in nursing homes grew by more than 110 percent nationwide between mid-September and the week of November 8.
The report also showed COVID-related deaths in nursing homes are starting to rise, 69 percent increase since late September. Nursing home residents are typically older adults with multiple chronic conditions, making them most vulnerable to COVID-19. Residents of long term care facilities account for only eight percent of the nation’s cases, yet 40 percent of its deaths. While mortality rates have decreased compared to the spring due to a better understanding of the virus, better treatments, and government resources to help reduce spread, industry leaders remain deeply concerned that the rising number of new COVID cases in facilities will ultimately lead to an increasing number of deaths.
“We are especially concerned that this situation will only get worse with Thanksgiving just around the corner,” continued Parkinson. “The public must realize that their actions not only endanger our nation’s most vulnerable, but also trigger government lockdowns of facilities, keeping these residents from their loved ones. This is detrimental to their health, wellbeing and happiness. We urge everyone to do their part to slow the spread immediately and exercise caution when celebrating Thanksgiving.”
With rising new COVID cases across the country, Parkinson said Congress must prioritize frontline health care workers and long term care residents during the lame duck session. Last week AHCA/NCAL released a list of actions that Congress should urgently take to help nursing homes and assisted living communities respond to the uptick in new cases.
Most of the $175 billion Provider Relief Fund provided by the CARES Act back in April has already been distributed and Parkinson said health care providers, including long term care facilities, will need additional funds to continue the response to the COVID pandemic heading into the cold and flu season. The financial aid is crucial in helping long term care facilities acquire personal protective equipment, conduct regular testing, and hire additional staff or reward current caregivers for their heroic efforts. “Congress must fulfill its duty,” stated Parkinson. “Without adequate funding and resources, the U.S. is repeating the same mistakes made during the initial outbreak last spring and the major spike over the summer. We need Congress to prioritize our vulnerable seniors and their caregivers in long term care facilities, by passing another COVID relief package during the lame duck session on Congress.”
For more information, please visit www.ahcancal.org/coronavirus.