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Thursday PM headlines: Road closed in Ogden Canyon, new USU police chief

Photo of new USU police chief Jason Brei speaking to students in late April
GARY GRANT

Road through Ogden Canyon closed indefinitely

After part of the roadway was washed out by the river, State Route 39 through Ogden Canyon is closed indefinitely.

According to an alert issued by the Utah Department of Transportation (UDOT) Thursday morning, there is no estimate on when it will open again. UDOT advised travelers to use alternate routes.

The Weber County Sheriff’s Office said the road is closed to all except Ogden Canyon residents. Other travelers have been advised to use Trappers Loop or the divide road in order to travel to or from upper Ogden Valley.

The damage to the road occurred about one mile east of the mouth of the canyon. Crews are now working to repair the road.

There is a river flood advisory from the National Weather Service in effect for the Ogden River below Pineview Reservoir.

New study shows targeted approach reduces overuse of antibiotic medications

A new study from Intermountain Health and University of Utah Health found that a targeted approach utilizing antibiotic stewardship practices significantly reduces the overuse of these medications.

The study was funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Researchers in the study reduced prescribing rates at urgent care clinics by 15%, which is equal to millions of doses of antibiotics.

They were able to do this by using antibiotic stewardship initiatives specifically designed for these outpatient settings.

This study included educating patients and clinicians and improving electronic health records to make it easier for clinicians to write fewer prescriptions.

Researchers say that when healthcare systems create and implement a system designed specifically for urgent care clinics, then these facilities can be more successful in providing the best care for their patients' illnesses.

During the intervention period of the study, the rate of antibiotics prescribed for respiratory patient encounters dropped from 48% to 33%.

Jason Brei hired as USU's new police chief

After a nationwide search, Utah State University has named Jason Brei as its new chief of police in the Department of Public Safety.

Brei will start his new position at the Logan campus on July 1.

Brei has 26 years of experience in law enforcement, and spent the majority of that time in the police department of a large university. He began his career in the Cochise County Sheriff’s office in Arizona and in 2000 he joined the University of Arizona Police Department (UAPD).

Brei served in a variety of positions with UAPD including patrol officer, lieutenant, commander, assistant chief and interim chief of police.

He also has more than 14 years of experience in command-level positions and spent the last nine years in executive leadership positions.

The university’s chief of police serves as an adviser and primary resource to the university with matters related to law enforcement, and is responsible for the operations of the university’s police department.

The chief directs all functions of the university police on the Logan and Eastern campuses of the university.

Caitlin Keith is a general news reporter at UPR. She is from Lindon, Utah and is currently an undergrad student studying print journalism at USU. Caitlin loves to write and tell people’s stories. She is also a writer at the Utah Statesman. She loves to read, ski, play the cello and watch various TV shows.