Tips Offered For Protection Against Flu And Coronavirus
PINEVILLE — Increasing media coverage of the coronavirus outbreak that began in China is creating some fear in our community. At the McDonald County Health Department, we understand that you are concerned about the new coronavirus and have questions about how to protect yourself and your family. Here is what you need to know.
The new coronavirus, also called covid-19, is spread on droplets when a person who is sick coughs and sneezes. It is not yet known whether it also spreads through the air. Most of the cases of covid-19 in the U.S. so far have been among people with recent travel to areas with covid-19 outbreaks or among close personal contacts of someone sick withcovid-19.
Because covid-19 is a new strain of coronavirus, there is no vaccine yet to protect against it, and our bodies do not have immunity to it. But there are simple steps you can take to protect yourself and your family.
• Wash your hands often with soap and water.
• Don't touch your face with unwashed hands.
• Keep a distance of 8 feet from people who are sick.
If you are well, you do not need to wear a face-mask to try to protect yourself from seasonal flu or coronavirus. Face-masks are intended to be worn by people who are sick, to keep germs from traveling far when the person coughs or sneezes. Face-masks are also needed by health care workers or family members who have to be very close to sick people in order to care for them.
There are no cases of coronavirus in McDonald County at this time, but we are still seeing a high number of seasonal flu cases each week. It is important that everyone in our community stay home when sick. Going to work, to church or out in the community when you are sick, or sending a sick child to school or daycare puts other people at risk. The best way to protect our whole community is for people who are sick to stay home.
We will hear about more cases of coronavirus and seasonal flu in the U.S. over the weeks and months ahead, but we have a strong public health system that is trained to quickly identify cases and stop the spread of disease. You can do your part to help by staying home when you are sick.
Wash your hands often, don’t touch your face with unwashed hands, and keep a distance from people who are sick. These simple steps will help protect you against coronavirus, the seasonal flu, and many other diseases that are spread from personto-person. These are the most important things you can do to protect yourself, your family, and our whole community.
To learn more, visit www. mcdonaldcountyhealth.com.