Officials: Coloradans should prep for virus like snowstorm

Dr. Michelle Barron, an infectiousdisease specialist at the University of Colorado Hospital, on Wednesday likened preparing for the spread of the new strain of coronavirus within the United States to preparing for a hefty winter snowstorm.

Buy some backup food and water. Make sure there’s enough dog food in the house. Have medicines for respiratory illnesses on hand.

Just in case.

More than anything, state public health officials are urging Coloradans to stay informed about the virus — more formally known as COVID-19 — by consulting reliable information sources such as the websites of the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

“It’s appropriate to say we will probably see more cases in the U.S. and throughout the world, but I don’t think that should set off an alarm,” said Barron, the medical director of infection

control and prevention at the University of Colorado Hospital.

“What do we do when a snowstorm is coming?” she asked. “Most people don’t panic. This is not a moment for you to start worrying and having anxiety. It’s a moment to think, ‘OK, if schools are canceled, what am I going to do with my kids? If I have a sick relative and I can’t get to her, who is going to watch my mom, whom I normally take care of ?’ ”

On Tuesday, officials with the CDC said it is not a question of “if” but “when” the coronavirus begins spreading in the United States.

No one in Colorado has tested positive for the virus as of Wednesday, according to the state health department.

Ready for Ebola, SARS and more

Colorado has developed pandemic response plans in the past couple of years in preparation for illnesses such as SARS, swine flu and Ebola in 2014, said Rachel Herlihy, state epidemiologist with the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment.

“We’ve built tools and protocols to monitor travelers and developed disease investigation protocols,” Herlihy said. “Our pandemic response plans we’ve been working on definitely have social distancing and community mitigation measures that are accounted for in those plans, but it’s certainly important for businesses to prepare and understand there could be disruption if we were to see transmission in Colorado.”

Because there’s not an ongoing transmission of the coronavirus in the country at the moment, Herlihy said the only people potentially at risk — who should seek medical care if they develop a fever, cough or other respiratory symptoms — are those who have traveled internationally to destinations where COVID-19 is spreading such as China or South Korea.

As for Denverites, Bob McDonald, executive director of Denver Department of Public Health and Environment, said the city always has had an emergency plan in place for infectious disease.

“We have quarantine isolation protocols in place, communications in place to reach out to jobs, schools to provide guidance should it enter into their facility,” McDonald said.

Coronaviruses are not new, McDonald said.

“This one is unique in that there’s not as much known about it, but the controls to contain the spread of it are no different than the controls someone would implement to keep themselves from contracting the cold virus or influenza,” McDonald said.

Wash your hands with soap and water.

Use alcohol-based hand sanitizer.

Sneeze and cough into a sleeve rather than your hand.

Avoid contact with anyone with cold or flu symptoms. Stay home from work or school if your are sick.

Face masks and the common flu

Although face masks can be important protective equipment for health care workers, they’re not the most effective in preventing the spread of sickness for the average citizen walking around — someone who is more likely to contract illness from touching an infected surface and then touching their mouth or nose, state health officials said.

“In the hospital setting, we use them when we’re taking care of children who have coughing, cold, runny roses,” said Chris Nyquist, medical director for infection prevention control at Children’s Hospital Colorado. “One of the challenges is, nationwide and internationally, there’s limited supplies for the masks, so it’s really important for people to use them appropriately.”

Coloradans are at a much greater risk of contracting the seasonal flu than the new coronavirus, Herlihy said.

Samuel Gomez, of Westminster, said his wife worried after hearing the CDC warn Americans this week to prepare for “significant disruption” to their daily lives.

“We have a 17-month-old at home, so we started preparing in case there’s some sort of lockdown,” Gomez said. “We looked at our pantry and are making a plan of what kind of canned food items we’re going to buy just to be prepared.”

Gomez said he’s not too worried about the virus itself just yet but wants to make sure he’s wellstocked in case there is a time when Coloradans are flocking to get dwindling supplies.

“We’re ensuring we have Vicks, elderberry, NyQuil,” Gomez said. “We’re just seeing what happens.”

“Like a snow day”

Dale Chu asked officials at his daughter’s school, Renaissance Montessori Academy in Parker, whether they were doing anything in preparation for the coronavirus.

On Wednesday, the Parker school sent a letter to parents saying the school already has a “robust illness policy” as well as a cleansing, sanitizing and disinfectant schedule. In addition, the letter said the school reports to the state health department when there are many people out because of the same illness or showing the same symptoms. It follows the department’s guidance from there.

“If a closure due to illness were to occur … it would be dealt with much like a snow day,” the letter said. “Also, if an illness spreads so much so that we don’t have enough staff to keep the school operating with proper ratios, we may have to make hard decisions on our open hours and number of children we can accept each day during the time of illness. We hope to not have to do this. But the admin team has discussed it, and we will be ready if it were to happen.”

Wednesday evening, Denver Public Schools officials said they planned to send a letter to parents informing them about the risks of the new coronavirus and the steps the district is taking to monitor for any outbreaks in the city’s schools. It also includes some very basic advice that doesn’t just apply to the coronavirus: Keep your kids home if they’re sick.