Milwaukee holds virtual town hall to clear COVID-19 confusion
MILWAUKEE - To clear confusion and calm fear around the COVID-19 vaccine, the Milwaukee Health Department hosted a virtual town hall on Wednesday night, Feb. 10 to "Crush COVID-19."
The town hall came as health experts say pandemic-related safety measures have delivered extra public health benefits.
As Milwaukee continues to be up against a limited COVID-19 vaccine supply from the state, Interim Health Commissioner Marlaina Jackson outlined how her department has delivered the vaccine.
The department hopes it may persuade more people to sign up, just by watching the live town hall on Facebook. The virtual event included expert analysis, a look at Milwaukee's COVID-19 data, even testimonials from city residents who have received the vaccine.
"Ultimately, for us to move through this phase in human history, it's really important for people to make both informed decisions, and really think about how getting vaccinated can help you move throughout your community," said Josh Parish, a Milwaukee firefighter.
Milwaukee Health Department leaders said they want everyone on the same page when it comes to understanding the pandemic, and how the vaccine is the best path out of it.
"The goal again is to make sure that when we talk about how many people we need to get vaccinated -- the more, the better. The quicker, the better," Jackson said.
Leaders also emphasized the ongoing need to remain vigilant in protecting one another -- washing hands, wearing masks and distancing. Experts at UW Health say those measures are helping fight another virus, too.
"What we're finding now is that we fortunately didn't have much of an influenza season at all, thus far, and that's welcome news," said Dr. Nasia Safdar, UW Health's medical director for infection prevention.
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At this point in 2020, UW Health reported over 1,000 positive influenza tests. But as of Wednesday, Feb. 10, 2021 -- just one.
"When the next year...even if the pandemic is over, which of course we hope it will be later in the fall...when you have other viruses circulating, I hope that people will reach for their masks," Safar said.
It's a sign to Safdar that wearing masks in particular might stick around past the pandemic.
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