COVID-19 illustration by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
NANTUCKET – Nantucket Public Health Director has told the select board that he is optimistic about the current COVID-19 trends on the island.
Roberto Santamaria said that a recent wastewater analysis showed only between 1 – 5 cases a day.
He said they plan on monitoring closely for another week to see if there will be an outbreak after the recent school vacation.
“We’re going to see spikes, we’re going to see ebbs and flows, but we know the vaccines work, we know this is moving forward and we now know the seasonality of it,” Santamaria said.
Select board member Melissa Murphy asked if the health office would be writing an analysis of what they learned from the pandemic to advise people on Nantucket for the next health care crisis.
Santamaria said he was currently working on an after-action report to address those questions.
Additionally, the health director said he was also working on a proposal for a quantitative survey that will offer “a retrospective view of our responses and getting information on what worked and best practices.”
Concerning vaccine availability on Nantucket, Santamaria said Nantucket Cottage Hospital is no longer offering boosters. Dan’s Pharmacy is still offering boosters of the Moderna vaccine.
To sign up for town and state vaccine clinics, there are in-person sign ups at the trailer on 131 Pleasant Street March 16th and 23rd at 4pm. People can also sign up through the town’s website.
By Brian Engles, CapeCod.com NewsCenter
