COVID-19 vs you
FEAR OF COVID-19 is spreading faster than the virus itself. We must not allow fear to cause us to panic and lose focus on how to protect ourselves and others.
The Government is doing its part to minimise our exposure to the virus, to contain the spread, and to preserve the health and life of affected individuals. We, as individual citizens, must reduce our personal risk and act responsibly to prevent the possibility of spread.
An online article reminds us that COVID-19 causes respiratory disease, which “presents as a wide range of illness, from asymptomatic or mild through to severe disease and death”. It is more serious in older adults, especially those with existing chronic diseases and those with weakened immune systems. It’s been found that 80.9 per cent of infected individuals have mild or no symptoms at all, while 13.8 per cent become severely ill (especially with shortness of breath and pneumonia) and 4.7 per cent end up needing critical care because of respiratory failure, septic shock and multi-organ failure. About three per cent of the cases is fatal.
COVID-19 allows infected people to walk around, seemingly healthy, for two weeks or more but able to transmit the virus before they experience symptoms … that’s if they experience any symptoms at all.
Unlike regular colds that start with fever, sneezing, runny nose/sore throat, COVID-19 usually begins with a fever followed by a dry cough. After about a week, it may go on to shortness of breath that requires hospitalisation in about 20 per cent of the cases.
It is deadlier than influenza: about three per cent of people infected with COVID-19 die, while 0.1 per cent of people infected with influenza die. Aside from healthcare workers, people who are elderly and have cardiovascular disease, diabetes, chronic respiratory disease and hypertension are especially at high risk for the serious effects of COVID-19.
Just the other day, I was walking through Devon House when a middle-age man rounded the corner and coughed with his mouth wide open. I held my breath as I walked through his invisible droplet cloud and prayed that he was not infected with anything, especially with the COVID-19 virus. Careless and dangerous people like him, with terrible personal hygiene habits, add to the suffering and deaths.
THE KEY
The key to our health and survival lies in keeping calm and focussed while practising the things that we have been repeatedly told on how to protect ourselves and contain the spread of this virus the best way that we can. Cough/sneeze into your sleeve or into disposable tissues (then dump ASAP).
Avoid crowds if possible. Increase your ‘personal space’ to about two metres. Assume that EVERYTHING that you touch is infected – these include doorknobs, handles, buttons, ATMs, rails, tables, chairs, other people’s hands, steering wheels, food packaging, money, remote controls and even your cellular telephone.
DO NOT put unwashed or unclean hands to your face or to anyone else’s face.
STAY HOME if you feel sick, call ahead to a doctor/hospital if you feel that you need medical intervention. Call 888ONE LOVE (663 5683) or 888-745-7792, or 876-542-5998, 542-6007, 542-6006, if you’re concerned about COVID-19 exposure or symptoms.
Soap only partially kills bacteria or viruses; but it allows us to wash them away with running water. Wet your hands then lather thoroughly (don’t forget wrists and finger tips), do so for about 20 seconds (sing the Happy Birthday song to yourself twice). Turn off the water with tissue to avoid reinfecting yourself by touching the tap. Use the same tissue to open the bathroom door as you exit. Then, dump it in the garbage ASAP. Use 60 to 70 per cent alcohol if you’re not able to wash your hands.
If these things are practised regularly, we can minimise the spread of COVID-19, avoid many infections, suffering, deaths, and economic ruin.