Coronavirus Update – February 26, 2021

The only way to end the pandemic is to be vaccinated, I am thrilled to say that 14,000 Hancock County residents have received their first vaccine injection and nearly 8,000 have received both, with nearly 600 people per day visiting vaccination sites.  The eligible age for vaccination has declined to 60 and the state is working to identify younger individuals with significant health risks to add to the mix.  Statewide, nearly 1 million Hoosiers have received their first dose with more than 500,000 having received their second!

Due to these very positive movements, on Monday March 1^st,  Hancock Regional Hospital is relaxing visitor restrictions to the lowest level since the beginning of the pandemic, please check out the hospital website for information on these changes.  We are also encouraging everyone to visit their physician for routine checkups and to obtain needed screenings.  We are seeing a significant increase in patients who are very sick from non-COVID ailments resulting from decisions last year to forego medical care and this is heartbreaking…

Though things are looking very positive at this time, please do not let down your guard.  Let’s continue to wear our masks, wash our hands, watch our distance, and get our vaccination as soon as it is available to us!

Let me end by thanking everyone in our community for their support over the past year.  The associates and medical staff at Hancock Health have worked hard to keep our community safe during the COVID crisis and are finally getting some needed rest.  We want you to know that even during the height of the crisis we did not stop working to be an even better healthcare organization.  Because of these efforts, we were recognized a few months ago as one of only 11 hospitals in Indiana with an “A” rating for hospital safety (https://www.hancockregionalhospital.org/about/quality-and-safety/) and just yesterday we were recognized as one of the “Best Maternity Hospitals in America” by Newsweek Magazine (https://www.newsweek.com/best-maternity-care-hospitals-2021), one of only six in Indiana and the only hospital in central Indiana to receive this recognition!

We are proud to serve you and thankful for your support!

Steve