Doctors providing virtual Covid-19 conference

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Eureka Springs saw big weekend crowds downtown earlier in October, traditionally the largest tourism month of the year. There were long lines to get into restaurants and streets were so crowded that some people reported being spooked.

In the third weekend in October, cold wet weather put a damper on the crowds, but increasing numbers of Covid-19 in Carroll County has led to health authorities urging people not to let covid fatigue lead them into taking risks.

“I am definitely concerned about the increase in numbers of Covid, particularly locally,” Dr. John House, who practices at the Eureka Springs Family Clinic, said. “For the most part, the residents of Eureka Springs and surrounding area seem to be doing everything they can to follow the guidelines established as being the best way to prevent spread. But, unfortunately, not everyone is doing so.”

There could be many reasons for that including the fact that many people catch the disease without showing any symptoms. House believes part of it is quarantine fatigue.

“We are social creatures and many of us have very active lives that can seem difficult to adapt to conditions required to prevent the spread of a pandemic,” House said.

Health authorities have been highly recommending people take the seasonable influenza shot this year so hospitals aren’t overwhelmed with a number of flu patients in addition to Covid patients. Also, there is concern that people could catch both things at once leading to more severe complications.

House said the clinic had a good turnout for recent drive-thru flu vaccine clinics.

“I don’t have the exact number, but it was at least comparable to last year’s walk-in vaccine clinic,” he said. “We have several more drive-thru flu clinics scheduled but they are by appointment only. Our clinic manager has the information about those.”

Due to the pandemic, the clinic is offering virtual appointments. House said the number of patients taking advantage of those varies from week to week.

“Obviously, there are some visits that require a physical exam, while others can easily be completed online,” House said. “We encourage as many patients as are able to use the virtual visits as this decreases the risk of spreading and/or contracting covid-19 for both the patient and the clinic staff.”

House and Dr. Jon D. Loudermilk will be holding an online conference entitled “Covid, Influenza, and Other Respiratory Infections” on Nov. 5 at 7 p.m. It’s free and everyone is welcome to attend. If you’re interested, please send an email to EScovidTalk@yahoo.com. You’ll receive an email with the zoom link.