Omaha AHEC Newsletter
April-June 2021
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- One Year of Covid-19
- Spring AHEC Scholars Workshop Overview
- Meet the Omaha AHEC Advisory Board
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It's been a little over a year since the country implemented shutdowns for COVID-19. One year of wearing masks, social distancing, working and learning from home, and having to completely change our way of life. Let's look back at the Nebraska confirmed Covid-19 cases as recorded on the last day of each month from March 2020-March 2021, and the current state of things surrounding the pandemic.
Nebraska's Confirmed Covid-19 Cases
Data from: CDC; WHO; ECDC;
2020
March ~ 177
April ~ 4,466
May ~ 13,905
June ~ 19,177
July ~ 26,211
August ~ 34,287
September ~ 45,564
October ~69,645
November ~ 126,466
December ~ 165,297
2021
January ~ 189,597
February ~ 200,848
March ~ 207,169
For a list of Nebraska's COVID-19 timeline, click here.
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COVID-19 Vaccinations in Nebraska
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Vaccination Resources
You can visit the Nebraska Dept. of Health and Human Services website to register for your Covid-19 vaccination. Vaccine appointments are for Nebraska residents. If you are not a Nebraska resident please register with your state of residency. You can learn more and register by clicking here.
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- US Vaccine Product Information
Learn more about the Moderna, Pfizer-BioNTech, and Janssen/J&J vaccines through the CDC website, by clicking here.
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V-safe is a smartphone-based tool that uses text messaging and web surveys to provide personalized health check-ins after you receive a COVID-19 vaccine. |
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Spring AHEC Scholars Workshop
The Omaha AHEC hosted its Spring AHEC Scholars 2021 Workshop on Saturday, March 27th. Alana Schriver, from the Refugee Empowerment Center discussed refugee resettlement, and our panelists talked about refugee health.
The definition of a refugee is often misconstrued in today's society. According to the UN Refugee Agency, refugees are defined as "people who have fled war, violence, conflict or persecution and have crossed an international border to find safety in another country." Further, refugees are protected in international law. The 1951 Refugee Convention is a key legal document and defines a refugee as “someone who is unable or unwilling to return to their country of origin owing to a well-founded fear of being persecuted for reasons of race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group, or political opinion.” In 2016, Nebraska resettled more refugees than any other US state.
According to the UN Refugee Agency, in 2019:
- 79.5 million people were forcibly displaced worldwide.
- 26 million people had refugee status.
- 40% of are under the age of 18.
- Asylum-seekers submitted 2.0 million new claims.
- 5.6 million displaced people returned to their areas or countries of origin.
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Our panelists, refugees Chandra Rai (Bhutan) and Paw Bway Htoo (Thailand) discussed refugee health, their experiences when seeing medical professionals in Nebraska, and the importance of cultural competency and sensitivity in the healthcare field. They gave some great advice and tips for healthcare professionals when working with refugee patients.
- It's important not to judge. A refugee's culture and experiences differ.
- They may not be familiar with practices that we may deem as simple, so be patient and understanding.
- Your tone and facial expressions are vital. Smile!
- Explain terms. Keep in mind, their first language is probably not English.
- Provide information to patients & let the patient make their own decision.
- Listen, encourage, and respect your patients.
- Treat them like a human.
- If a language interpreter is present, don't forget the patient is there.
Get involved! Take a look at the resources below to see how you can help!
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Omaha AHEC Advisory Board |
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Dr. Paul Davis, Ph.D. is the Omaha AHEC Board Chair. In addition, he is an Associate Professor of Biology, Faculty Associate of the INBRE Program, Director of the UNO Health Careers Resource Center, and the Director of the Urban Health Opportunities Program (UHOP). Dr. Davis' research interests include Human Infectious Diseases (Tropical Medicine, Parasitology, and Microbiology). Dr. Davis was born and raised in Kansas. In his free time, he enjoys spending time with his family. |
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Heidi Kaschke
Heidi is the Director of the University of Nebraska Medical Center High School Alliance program. The mission of the UNMC High School Alliance is to introduce students to the wide variety of health care careers which is similar to the mission of AHEC. Heidi sits on the Omaha Public Schools Foundation Board of Directors, the Benson High School Health Academy Board of Directors, and the Omaha Public Schools Career Advisory Board of Directors.
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Hayley is an AHEC Scholar, as well on the AHEC Advisory Board. Currently she works at Walgreen’s Pharmacy as an intern, attend the University of Nebraska Medical Center- College of Pharmacy, and is the president elect of SSHP (Student Society of Health-System Pharmacists). In her free time, Hayley enjoys rollerblading. |
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Kiley Dinsmore
Kiley is currently a junior at the University of Nebraska at Omaha, and works at Nebraska Medicine as a Patient Care Technician. In addition, she also works at UNMC's iExcel Clinical Simulation Lab at the Global Davis Center as an intern. Kiley is involved in Chi Omega and the UNO Pre-Health Professionals Club as President (which led to her involvement with AHEC). Kiley enjoys being outdoors, playing tennis, kayaking, four wheeling, and snorkeling!
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