Prince Charles has been found to have been infected with the
virus and so has the President of my Alma Mater Harvard University, Dr. Lawrence S. Bacow and his family. There are a
slew of celebrities, new ones every day, and politicians who have also
contracted the virus.
Not to say this is good company or vice versa but the fact
is that many many of us have this virus and don’t know it because we haven’t
been tested.
Which brings me to my 'pet peeve’ about this whole Covid
virus pandemic here in this country. As someone who has a Master’s degree in
Public Health (MPH) I can tell you that Epidemiology 101 requires us to screen
everyone when there is a pandemic. This is a basic first step. That is the only
way to stop it. We knew this was going to happen 3 months ago and yet we did
not get the tests in place or the equipment that we needed ahead of time to handle
it and limit the damage. A community needs to screen both symptomatic and
asymptomatic people to determine who needs to be quarantined so they don’t
infect the rest of society.
Now we have no choice but to shut down social gatherings and
schools to limit people’s contact with each other but what happens when we lift
the bans? People will still be spreading the virus without knowing it.
Hopefully at some point we will have enough ‘herd immunity’ as it is called, to
reverse the rates of infection and therefore deaths. Things are going to get
much worse before it gets better.
There are still parts of the USA that haven’t been so badly
hit yet. Still no one seems to learn from areas that precede them in this
tragedy. People are still thinking it won’t affect them or it won’t be as bad.
Be warned: no one is special and because it is a novel virus, no one is immune!
We all saw what China was going through but somehow didn’t
get the message. Spain looked over and saw the disaster in Italy but still
didn’t accelerate their response. Russia looks at Europe and pretends it’s not
a Russian problem. Louisiana doesn’t want to shut down yet because its ‘not as
bad as New York’ . The Governor of Alabama says “this isn’t China!”
Next stop Africa and India please get ready you don’t have
sufficient sophisticated medical care, thousands will die. I heard today that India was so busy
exporting masks and ventilators they didn’t keep enough for themselves.
Well now that I got that off my chest….. let’s try and
control what we can!
Howard county is about to start a drive through testing
center in Columbia (MVA Emissions testing center) but you will still need a
doctor’s note to get tested. I understand the personnel are currently being
trained. It should be open soon, hopefully. There is another one scheduled to
open at Fedex field. It is being held up by a lack of testing kits!
It is important that you understand everyone cannot
request a test (despite Epidemiology 101) because the US has insufficient tests
nationwide. Therefore we have to prioritize who can get tested, please be
patient and community minded.
In the meantime if you have these symptoms CALL your doctor:
·
Fever
·
Cough
·
Difficulty breathing
·
Loss of taste or smell
·
?Red eyes (not validated)
Do NOT got to the office without calling first. We can arrange for you to get the
prescription for testing (when the centers open) if it is appropriate.
If you have mild symptoms:
·
Do not rush to the ER!
·
Self isolate
·
Maintain hydration. Drink only warm liquids
·
Inhale steam
·
Take
Acetaminophen (Tylenol) NOT Ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin or Aleve) and not
aspirin for fever and aches
·
Cough syrup or lozenges to ease the cough (your
doctor may also call something in for you)
·
Take Echinacea, Goldenseal or our Viral Mix
·
Rest, rest and more rest
·
Monitor your temperature to see if it is
responding to treatment
For severe symptoms such as difficulty breathing call the doctor
or 911.
Last but not least notify appropriate contacts to be cautious.
Dr. N. Tuakli MD, MPH
FYI Our office is open for in-person and telemedicine visits.
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