Florida counties preparing for mass coronavirus vaccine rollout

As the first round of vaccines for the coronavirus are delivered, officials in cities and counties around the state are preparing for what will be a massive effort to vaccinate the general population. Distribution to the masses doesn't come into play until Phase 3 of Florida's roll out. Planning chief at Hillsborough's Office of Emergency Management Marcus Martin said health workers, elderly residents and first responders are the main priority right now. "Phase 2 is going to transition into critical organizations: transportation, utilities, education partners, etc.," he said. [Source: Health News Florida]

Florida governments, groups urge rehearing on conversion therapy

Cities, counties and groups from Florida and other parts of the country are trying to help sway a federal appeals court to reconsider a potentially far-reaching decision that blocked bans on the controversial practice known as “conversion therapy.” The local governments and groups have filed requests during the past week to submit briefs in support of Palm Beach County and the city of Boca Raton, which sought a rehearing after a panel of the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals last month ruled that ordinances banning conversion therapy violated the First Amendment. [Source: News Service of Florida]

Florida medical groups urge workers to get vaccinated

Two of Florida’s largest medical associations sent an open letter to front-line health care workers Tuesday lauding them for their service during the COVID-19 pandemic and urging them to get vaccinated against the virus that causes the deadly respiratory disease. "Health care professionals like you have tirelessly served our state over the past nine months responding to an unprecedented public health crisis and coming together in extraordinary ways to help your communities," the letter from the Florida Hospital Association and the Florida Medical Association said. [Source: WOFL]

Florida hospital occupancy expected to rise after post-holiday surge

Florida frontline health workers are concerned as a new report showed about 17,000 new confirmed cases of the coronavirus, pushing the state’s total to nearly 1.3 million since the start of the pandemic. Officials say COVID-19 hospitalizations are about half of what they were in the summer. Much of that can be attributed to preparedness, as well as resources and supplies such as masks and gloves are now more readily available. [Source: WPEC]

America has an urgent need for Black doctors: 'It's hard to be what you can't imagine'

Several studies have shown patients of color benefit from having doctors of color. An analysis of Florida hospital records published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences found Black babies were less likely to die in the care of Black doctors than white doctors. And as the coronavirus pandemic has laid bare disparities in health outcomes and health care access among Black, Latino and Native American communities, the need for a more diverse medical workforce is more important than ever. [Source: USA Today]

ALSO AROUND FLORIDA:

› Orlando-based prosthetics nonprofit Limbitless Solutions goes ‘cyberpunk’ [WUSF]
What does "Cyberpunk 2077" – the much hyped video game that features the voice of Keanu Reeves – have to do with Limbitless Solutions, the Orlando-based nonprofit that makes prosthetic limbs? Reeves’ character, Johnny Silverhand, is the inspiration for the new prosthetic arm from Limbitless. The company is continuing the tradition of designs inspired by fictional characters - although unlike the "Iron Man" arm it rolled out before- these new prosthetic limbs are for adults.

› Bayfront Hospital's new owner and president [Florida Trend]
Under the majority ownership of Tennessee-based Community Health Systems over the last six years, St. Petersburg’s Bayfront Hospital saw layoffs, executive turnover and accusations from a nurses union that the quality of patient care was declining. In October, a new owner, Orlando Health, took over the hospital — St. Petersburg’s oldest and largest — and appointed John A. Moore as Bayfront’s president.

› Mutts, masks and modifications: How veterinarians are handling COVID-19 [WUSF]
Veterinarians in Florida were deemed essential workers in March, so their work didn’t stop when the COVID-19 pandemic began. And yet while business is booming for vets in Alachua County, everything is different. The volume of customers has increased, as people stuck at home with their pets have been noticing issues more quickly, vets say. And while finances aren’t threatened, COVID-19 has affected many of the emotional aspects of a vet visit or being a provider.

› In Central Florida, COVID-19 pandemic takes heavy toll on mental health [Orlando Sentinel]
Surveys across the region and the nation show the greatest toll of COVID-19 may not be found in the daily drumbeat of statistics tallying the dead and infected. It may not be the tumbling revenues or storefront closures or crushing jobless rates. It may not be measured in numbers at all. Instead, it may be the collective grief, despair and disorientation of a world that is nothing like its predecessor, one eternal year ago. And for many, the damage may not be fixed by a vaccine.