New Data Shows How San Diego County Fares On COVID-19
Speaker 1: 00:00 As COVID numbers continue to rise and America hits dark milestones in this pandemic. I, new source is helping to connect you with financial medical and mental health resources in a panel discussion. The event is called facing the pandemic in 2021 lessons learned and tips for the year ahead. I new sources, Jill Castellano is moderating the discussion and joins us now. Jill, welcome. Thanks for having me. So what prompted you all to do this panel? Well, Speaker 2: 00:29 We at our new source are really pushing ourselves to find new ways to connect with and engage with the communities that we cover. We think it's really important, especially now when everyone's a little bit apprehensive and there's a lot to be worried about. And there's a lot that we don't really understand, especially when it comes to COVID-19. So we want this to be a really tangible opportunity for people to learn new tools and new resources that can help them navigate and get through this pretty unprecedented time, especially communities in South Bay, where we know the virus is spreading really rapidly, and there's a real high risk in that area. That's why we're hosting this event in both English and Spanish. We're really excited about the opportunity to Speaker 1: 01:16 That's great. And tell me who will be on the panel? Speaker 2: 01:19 Yeah, this is really cool. This is my favorite part is just the panel that we've put together. The group of panelists is they each bring their own unique perspective to this conversation. We have Michael Weiss. Who's someone who we've written about before in our reporting. He's a COVID 19 survivor who spent 10 days on a ventilator at sharp Chula Vista hospital. His mother passed away while he was on a ventilator. His uncle also died from the virus. So he's intimately familiar with what this virus means and the human impact that it can have. We also have Nancy Maldonado. She's the CEO of the Chicano Federation. It's a nonprofit group that advocates for Latino communities in San Diego County that has played a really big role in pushing for more and better communication and resources for these communities. Mayor Mary Salus will be joining us too. The mayor of Chula Vista, who's managed the city's response to COVID-19 and then we have Kerryn McDaniel Stevenson. She's the director of the Institute for public health at San Diego state university. So she's there to provide that scientific perspective and answer questions like how bad are things really, and how soon are we getting that vaccine? So each person really brings their own perspective and I'm excited to bring them all together for this discussion. Speaker 1: 02:38 Um, and as we settle into this new year, what do you hope people are able to take away from this discussion? Speaker 2: 02:44 I really hope that everybody can walk away with at least one new tangible step or resource they didn't know about that can make things just a little bit easier for them this year. After the event, we'll be providing everyone who attended with a resource that includes mental health resources, physical health, like if you're sick and you don't know where to go as well as economic and financial resources. So if you're having trouble paying your bills, paying your rent, if you need cheaper, free food, where do you go? We'll be providing that in both English and in Spanish. And we'll also be making that available on our website. So I really hope that makes people breathe a little bit easier. Speaker 1: 03:23 And remind me again of when this panel discussion is taking place Speaker 2: 03:27 Thursday, January 14th, at 5:30 PM, you can join us on zoom and register@inewsource.org. You can also watch live on Facebook and on YouTube. Speaker 1: 03:37 You've done a lot of research on this pandemic and actually even have a report coming out later this week. What trends are you seeing in San Diego case numbers? Speaker 2: 03:46 Jade, the trends are not looking good. Cases are up 10% from just a week ago. Deaths are up 22%. That's according to data from the CDC from Monday the vaccine though, it seems like it's around the corner. It's really far off. We have a lot of work to do before then outbreaks are still on the rise. So we're not out of the woods yet. Speaker 1: 04:06 And I know all of this will be a big part of the conversation I've been speaking with. I news source reporter Jill Castellano, who is moderating and upcoming panel called facing the pandemic in 2021 lessons learned and tips for the year ahead. Jill, thank you so much for joining us. Thanks so much for having me on.
