With COVID-19 not going away anytime soon, I'm looking to create some expectations and predictability in Cedar Falls City Hall. For instance, Council members and residents have been asking me when we’ll go back to in-person City Council meetings. The City Operational Response Guide is designed as a communications tool for this answer. We need to base these kinds of decisions on realistic metrics, not just when we "feel like it’s OK" to do so.
Over the past several weeks, I've been working with city staff to create a written guide for measured, stair-stepped responses to Coronavirus spread risk. Some of the guidance simply captures existing practices. The City Operational Response Guide (a clear PDF copy of the doc is available here) is intended to manage community expectations and provide clarity for where, when, and what City actions are anticipated to occur. I've solicited feedback from City staff, City Council Members, the County Public Health Department, and the City of Waterloo, as our sister city. The plan is intended to be continually improved based on the latest public health guidance. It could be adapted for use by any city.
The risk levels are taken from the Harvard Global Health Institute’s CoVID risk tracker. Each county’s risk number is a seven day rolling average of the daily new PCR Positive count per 100,000 population. It only works because the numbers are proportionally adjusted to a population of 100K. The seven-day average of the HGHI Count also smooths out the daily spikes and valleys. This is especially important for adjusting to differences in weekend/weekday testing and reporting.
This plan will allow a city to add to or remove from its response protocols based on the measured risk. In Cedar Falls, we'll seek do adjust only when the HGHI count in a higher or lower level consistently, to avoid frequent and confusing response shifts. Moreover, the City may additionally take action in response to regional trends or forecasts, with the advice of City Council. We'll also continue to monitor metrics such as positivity rates, hospitalizations, and deaths to understand the risks and impact of CoVID spread in Cedar Falls, to help in making informed decisions.
I'd like to hear your thoughts on it!
I also track the County's HGHI Count over time in a Google Sheet to view trends. (Feel free to check my math)
Thanks for reading to the end, curious citizen! And thank you for doing the work to be an informed and engaged resident.