Press Releases
Year
International Overdose Awareness Day is August 31st
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
August 30, 2022
Contact
Julie Pryde, Administrator
(217) 531-5369 /
Tanya Giannotti, Public Relations
(217) 531-2925 /
International Overdose Awareness Day is August 31st
CUPHD honors lives lost to drug overdose and its impact on community
CHAMPAIGN, IL – The Champaign-Urbana Public Health District (CUPHD) recognizes August 31st as International Overdose Awareness Day. International Overdose Awareness Day strives to honor the lives lost to drug overdose and its impact on victim’s friends, family, and the public at large.
In the United States, overdose-related deaths have been on the rise in the last two decades. Over 107,000 Americans died from a drug-related overdose in 2021. The opioid epidemic’s impact has also influenced these numbers. In Illinois, 3,494 individuals died from a drug-related overdose in 2021. In Champaign County, 41 people died from an opioid overdose in 2021. Considering these statistics, it’s important to note that for every reported overdose, there are countless others that go unreported.
On this day, CUPHD would also like to recognize the stigma associated with drug use and the negative effect it has on those with lived experience. In order to dismantle that stigma, overdose awareness and education are vital. At CUPHD, our Partnership to Reduce Opiate Mortality and Promote Training (PROMPT) Program strives to do just that by providing Narcan training, overdose prevention education, syringe exchange services, and more. For more information, contact our PROMPT program coordinator, Joe Trotter, at 217-531-5370.
For more information: https://www.c-uphd.org/syringe-exchange.html
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Champaign County COVID-19 Community Level High
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
August 29, 2022
Contact
Julie Pryde, Administrator
(217) 531-5369 /
Amy Roberts, Public Relations
(217) 531-4264 /
Champaign County COVID-19 Community Level High
Champaign-Urbana Public Health District Strongly Recommends Wearing A Mask Indoors in Public Spaces
CHAMPAIGN, IL – The Champaign-Urbana Public Health District (CUPHD) announces that COVID-19 community level transmission in Champaign County is high and strongly recommends that everyone wear a mask when indoors in public spaces. The level of transmission is based on three indicators which includes new case rate per 100,000 population, percent of staffed inpatient beds occupied by COVID-19 patients and new COVID-19 admissions per 100,000 population.
According to Julie Pryde, CUPHD Administrator, “The number of cases in the community and oncampus have increased about 50% in the last one week. Based on trends from previous years, we are likely to experience higher spread in the next 10 days. Indoor masking and staying at home when sick with symptoms will help reduce this spread.”
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends those in a high transmission area to wear a high-quality mask or respirator and if you are at high risk of getting very sick, consider avoiding non-essential indoor activities in public where you could be exposed. Additional precautions include staying up-to-date on vaccinations and boosters, maintaining ventilation improvements, avoiding contact with people who have suspected or confirmed COVID-19, follow recommendations for isolation if you have suspected or confirmed COVID-19, follow the recommendations of what to do if you are exposed to someone with COVID-19, and if you are at high risk of getting very sick, talk with a healthcare provider about additional prevention actions.
Additional information on COVID-19 community level transmission, visit:
https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/your-health/covid-by-county.html https://www.c-uphd.org/covid-case-and-testing-data.html.
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Update to Monkeypox Case in County Daycare Worker
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 3, 2023
Contact
Julie Pryde, Administrator
(217) 531-5369 /
Tanya Giannotti, Public Relations
(217) 531-2925 /
Update to Monkeypox Case in County Daycare Worker
No secondary spread at this time.
CHAMPAIGN, IL – Champaign-Urbana Public Health District (CUPHD) is providing an update on the case of monkeypox associated with a daycare worker in Rantoul, Ill. With the assistance of Carle Health and the Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH), CUPHD has conducted screenings on all adults and children and offered the Jynneos vaccine to all who had potential exposure. As of today, there have been no cases of secondary spread, meaning no one else associated with the known case of monkeypox has tested positive, including no one at the daycare and no one in the home. The case is currently in isolation and doing well.
“The daycare center that we worked with was very responsive and quick in their actions to ensure the safety of the children and the center’s employees,” said Julie Pryde, administrator of
Champaign-Urbana Public Health District. “The daycare’s director worked closely with us from the start to ensure that the CDC-required cleaning was done and that all who had potential exposures were contacted.”
Monkeypox is a rare, but potentially serious viral illness, which belongs to the Orthopoxvirus family, and typically begins with flu-like symptoms and swelling of the lymph nodes and progresses to a rash on the face and body. The virus can spread through close prolonged contact with an infected person or animal. This might include contact with the skin lesions, body fluids, or sharing clothes or other materials that have been used by someone who is infectious, and through respiratory droplets in prolonged face-to-face contact.
People who have a new or unexplained rash, sores, or symptoms, or have a confirmed exposure should contact a healthcare provider for assessment and testing. If a person or their partner has monkeypox, they should follow the treatment and prevention recommendations outlined by their healthcare provider and avoid sex or being intimate with anyone until all sores have healed and a fresh layer of skin has formed.
“I would like to thank the daycare director and staff, Carle’s amazing quick response team, and my colleagues at the Illinois Department of Public Health and Champaign-Urbana Public Health District for their incredible work on this situation,” said Ms. Pryde.
Due to the limited availability of the Jynneos vaccine, only those with increased risk of infection are eligible currently for vaccination. Individuals with questions about their eligibility for the monkeypox vaccine may email
For more about this virus, visit:
https://www.cdc.gov/poxvirus/monkeypox/
https://www.c-uphd.org/documents/press_release/2022/2022-08-05-Monkeypox-PR.pdf
https://www.c-uphd.org/monkeypox-MPV-communication.html
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Download 2022-08-10-mpv-update-PR