Let’s talk about Coronavirus.
I know – If you’re like me… it’s probably the only thing anyone wants to talk about with you. It’s inundating your inbox. You’re longing for just one notification from the nice “barrister” that says you’ve won the Dutch lottery and just have to send your credit card info to their shipping agent in Nigeria. You’d probably go for it at this point. I get it. It’s all so overwhelming.
The biggest thing is the uncertainty. There are so many sources of information out there about what to do and what not to do, what might happen and what might not happen. I want to help you sort all of that out and let you know that I’m a resource for you, whether you are a patient… or not. If you have a question, please don’t hesitate to reach out and ask. If I can’t answer it, I’ll find out for you. We’re in this together.
First off, as of right now, we are still seeing patients. Reality is that self quarantine and social distancing are important… but if you’re somewhere on the recovery road for a physical injury and we’re helping, we want to keep you on a positive path.
As I write this, it is Sunday afternoon and we’ve just left the clinic, where we did a thorough cleaning and disinfecting. We aren’t like a hospital in that we don’t treat viruses and infections… but we want to be sure that all of our patients are safe and that nobody gets exposed to any unnecessary unknowns.
You should take precautions too – especially if you are venturing into the world to see us. If you use some diligence, you can really minimize your risks.
Wash your hands frequently. I’m obsessive about it because I deal with patients, obviously… but you should be too. One of the best pieces I’ve read was from a virologist who, when he is not working, washes his hands every time he enters a new building. Purell is good… but it doesn’t take the place of soap and water.
Don’t touch your face. Don’t even think about touching your face. I know that is easier said than done but this is a surface borne virus. Carrier X coughs into their hand and then touches a railing. You come along and touch the railing and you now have the microbes on your hand… but they haven’t gone to work yet. They need an entry and your eyes, nose, and mouth are prime. Bite your fingernail, and you’ve closed the cycle. Rub your eye, and you could very well become the next diagnosis.
Stay 6 feet from others (that means stay out of large public gatherings). If there are airborne elements, you are safe at 6 feet. The Marshmello show may still be on but, if you go, you’re going to be shoulder to shoulder with others who are coughing and breathing heavily. Marshmello, himself, will be the only one who is safe on the stage.
That brings up the idea of masks. Unless YOU are sick, you don’t need one. If you are coughing and have to go to the doctor, by all means, don one. If you are sick and not going to the doctor, stay at home and in self quarantine. If you’re not sick, the mask can’t protect you from touching infected surfaces. All it does is make masks unavailable for dental and medical practices that need them.
Use your sleeve or hip to open doors. Minimize your touching of communal public surfaces and, again, stay out of crowds. That doesn’t mean you can’t go for a walk on the beach.
I understand that there is a lot of talk about how “this is nothing” and that you have no fears if you’re not in the “danger zone” demographics. Kids are virtually immune. The deaths in Italy have averaged 82 years of age. That’s all true… but it seems to minimize everyone else’s risk.
In this “new normal” you ARE the risk – particularly if you don’t take extra precautions. Say you’re 19 years old and you contract COVID-19 by touching a surface and then touching your face. Maybe you have no symptoms… but that’s what makes you dangerous. If you go to visit grandma, she gets it, and the symptoms could develop very quickly for her. Death could result for grandma without you ever knowing you had contracted it, yourself.
Another factor to consider is that the health care system can’t handle the overload of patients if we all get sick at the same time. This is why we are trying to “flatten the curve” and spread out the rate of illness. If significantly more people are ill and in hospitals, we will see more devastating results.
We could all bite the bullet and hide out for 21 days and then not let anyone new into our nation until the pandemic has dissipated… but that won’t happen. 21st century realities sneak into the equation. Our best bet within the framework we have is to educate ourselves and act upon it. I’ve included some articles, below, that speak to the issue without propagating fear or panic. Good science stays away from those things.
Until we get to the other side of this, we’ll endeavor to do the best we can given trying circumstances. We’ll clean and disinfect multiple times a day, we’ll screen our patients, and we’ll adapt to a changing environment. For your part, we need your help and we need you to stay at home if you are symptomatic. If you’re not, engage in those healthy habits we outlined above. If we put our heads… and our efforts… together, we’ll all get through this.
For additional explanations of what’s going on, check out:
Cancel Everything. (The Atlantic)
CDC.gov’s coronavirus resource page.
Thanks to East Castle Group for helping me consolidate useful information on this topic.