COVID-19 Updates from Mercer County
DONORS NEEDED TO ALLEVIATE BLOOD SHORTAGE
| The American Red Cross and health care workers across New Jersey face a severe blood shortage due to an unprecedented number of blood drive cancellations during the COVID-19 crisis.
“We need to take care of one another, and one way to do that during this public health emergency is by making a blood donation,” Mercer County Brian M. Hughes said. “If you’re healthy and eligible to donate, please consider giving blood.” This blood shortage could impact patients who need surgery, victims of car accidents and other emergencies, or patients fighting cancer, the Red Cross reports. |
Giving blood is considered an essential community service, so residents are permitted to leave their homes to donate. The Red Cross stresses that donating is a safe process, and says it has implemented additional precautions to ensure the safety of donors and staff, including:
- wearing gloves and changing them often
• wiping down donor-touched areas after every collection
• using sterile collection sets for every donation
• preparing the arm for donation with aseptic scrub
• conducting donor mini-physicals to ensure donors are healthy and well on day of donation
• temperature checks prior to entering the blood drive
• social distancing between donation beds where possible
The Red Cross is asking that individuals postpone their donation for 28 days following:
• travel to China and its special administrative regions, Hong Kong and Macau, as well as Iran, Italy and South Korea
• diagnosis of COVID-19, or contact with a person who has the virus or is suspected to have it
To schedule a blood donation, visit www.redcross.org or call 1-800-RED-CROSS.
| WASH YOUR HANDS. STAY AT HOME.
To mitigate the impact of COVID-19 and protect the capacity of New Jersey’s health care system for the state’s most vulnerable, all residents are under a stay-at-home order issued by Gov. Phil Murphy. Executive Order No. 107 provides for certain exceptions, such as obtaining essential goods or services, seeking medical attention, visiting family or close friends, reporting to work, or engaging in outdoor activities. It also directs the closure of all non-essential retail businesses to the public. Find more information at covid19.nj.gov. |
HAVE GENERAL QUESTIONS ABOUT COVID-19?
The NJ Poison Control Center and 211 have partnered with the State to provide information to the public on COVID-19:
Call: 2-1-1
Call (24/7): 1-800-962-1253
Text: NJCOVID to 898-211
Visit covid19.nj.gov or nj.gov/health for additional information
| PREVENTION
To ensure the lowest chance of obtaining the virus, and spreading the virus to others: |
| SYMPTOMS
Symptoms – fever, cough, shortness of breath – can appear between 2-14 days after exposure, though some people may not have any symptoms while still being contagious. It’s also important to consider whether you’ve been in contact with an infected person, as well as any symptoms you may be experiencing. If you believe you’ve been infected and you are not in immediate danger, you should contact your doctor by phone. If you are experiencing a medical emergency, call 911, and notify the dispatch personnel that you may have COVID-19. |
COPING WITH STRESS
If you’re feeling stressed, anxious or depressed due to COVID-19, please call New Jersey’s Mental Health Hotline at 877-294-HELP (4357) or visit njmentalhealthcares.org for emotional support, guidance, and mental health referrals as needed. You also may call the SAMHSA Disaster Distress Helpline at 1-800-985-5990 or text TalkWithUs to 66746 (TTY 1-800-846-8517).
JOBS AND HIRING
Did you lose your job or have your hours reduced as a result of COVID-19? Businesses across New Jersey need thousands of workers for immediate hire. Learn more about who is hiring in your community at jobs.covid19.nj.gov.
BUSINESS ASSISTANCE
For information on COVID-19/Novel Coronavirus and its impact on businesses – including resources, assistance and regulations — visit the State of New Jersey business portal at https://cv.business.nj.gov and the Mercer County Office of Economic Development at http://www.mercercounty.org/work/economic-development.
CONSUMER COMPLAINTS
If you receive a call from a scammer or suspect price gouging, please report it to the Division of Consumer Affairs at (973) 504-6240 or at www.njconsumeraffairs.gov.
| CURRENT STATUS
The New Jersey Department of Health on March 24 announced 846 new positive cases, bringing the total of positive cases in the state to 3,675, with 44 deaths. The most positive cases are in Bergen County, which has 701; Mercer County has 58. Visit the New Jersey Department of Health’s COVID-19 Dashboard for more information. The CDC on March 24 announced a total of 44,183 cases of COVID-19 in the United States, and a total of 544 deaths, with 54 locations (50 states, District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, Guam and U.S. Virgin Islands) reporting cases. This includes both confirmed and presumptive positive cases of COVID-19 reported to CDC or tested at CDC since Jan. 21, 2020. State and local public health departments are now testing and publicly reporting their cases. This is a rapidly evolving situation. For more information about COVID-19 visit covid19.nj.gov or cdc.gov. |
