A Good War

Remember last spring when people were wiping down everything from door knobs, kitchen counters, home-delivered groceries and even mail with Clorox wipes? This wasn’t necessarily bad advice, there was just a lot to learn about this novel virus. It was a reasonable assumption at the time. We know that seasonal flu can often be transmitted via door knobs and other common surfaces.

However, many studies have now concluded that the chance of getting a COVID-19 infection from surface contamination–including well-controlled studies of COVID-19 wards in hospitals–is quite small. The best way to protect your family is social distancing, hand washing and wearing a mask when in public.

For more information on these new studies, listen to this 3-minute audio clip from NPR.

Watch this 90-second video about a family in Arlington, Texas that got together for a birthday party. All of them caught COVID-19.

Video

“About 100 million Americans now have the ability to get pop-up notifications from local health authorities when they’ve personally spent time near someone who later tested positive for the coronavirus.”

Depending on where you live, you might be able to get notification if you have been exposed to someone at work, school or another public area–by an app on your smart phone. The information is anonymous–no one is tracking your location, unlike many other apps you may be using for social media. This app isn’t perfect, but could be of great help slowing the spread of COVID, particularly when more than 40% of people spreading the disease do so when not showing any symptoms.

“Exposure alerts worked for the governor of Virginia, Ralph Northam. He and the first lady tested positive for the coronavirus in September, and because they had it working on their phones, staff members exposed to them got notified. And they’re picking up steam: In its first few weeks, Colorado’s system was activated by a million residents, or 17 percent of its population.”

States currently using the system:

• Alabama: GuideSafe
• Colorado: CO Exposure Notifications
• Connecticut: Covid Alert CT
• Delaware: Covid Alert DE
• Guam: Guam Covid Alert App
• Maryland: MD Covid Alert
• Michigan: MI Covid Alert
• Nevada: Covid Trace
• New Jersey: Covid Alert NJ
• New York: Covid Alert NY
• North Carolina: SlowCovidNC
• North Dakota: Care19 Alert
• Pennsylvania: Covid Alert PA
• Virginia: Covidwise
• Washington, D.C.: DC Can
• Wyoming: Care19 Alert

And these states have either announced their intent to launch services or are running limited tests:

• Arizona: CovidWatch at the University of Arizona
• California: COVID Notify at University of California campuses
• Hawaii: AlohaSafe Alert
• Oregon
• Washington

Nations around the world are also using similar Bluetooth technology for notifications, including Switzerland, Ireland, Northern Ireland, Scotland and England.

For more information, read this article:

This is the best article I have read about the COVID-19 vaccines. Two of the vaccines that have completed Phase III trials will soon become available to those in the top priority groups–frontline healthcare workers and first responders, plus those who are at higher risk because of their age; and those who have underlying conditions that increase their risk for severe disease. This superb article explains how the vaccines are being produced, tested, how they actually protect against the disease and many other key issues.

Read the article

Last spring, many of the folks living in rural America watched in horror as the pandemic raced through major urban areas–but thought they would be safe. That has now changed. Kathryn Jones tells her story in Texas Monthly.

“The pandemic felt so far away out here. My husband and I live eight miles south of Glen Rose—the nearest town of any size—barely over the Somervell-Bosque county line. Our house sits a mile and a half off Texas Highway 144, past two ranch gates and cattle guards, and at the end of a winding, up-and-down gravel road that leads to a ridgetop. There are no other houses in sight, just a wide western view of layered blue mesas.”

Kathryn and her husband followed the rules–even though many in her sparsely populated county did not. Katheryn rarely went to town, but when she did, she wore a mask and vinyl gloves at the grocery store and for a trip to the courthouse to vote. After a week of rationalizing the telltale symptoms (low fever, dull headache, sudden loss of smell and taste) she went in to the local hospital to be tested. She was positive.

Read Kathryn’s story

Governor Kim Reynolds signed a proclamation requiring Iowans over the age of 2 to wear masks in indoor public spaces starting Tuesday. “If Iowans don’t buy into this, we’ll lose,” she said. “Businesses will close once again, more schools will be forced to go online, and our health care system will fail.”

Read the article

The concept of herd immunity can be confusing–particularly with the wide variety of “opinions” of TV talking heads. However, this article by Dr Gigi Kwik Gronvall and Rachel West provides a clear explanation of the facts–without political spin. This is what you need to know to protect your family.

Article

Flu season will soon begin, so it is important that all members of your family (6 months of age and older) get their flu shot within the next few weeks. Flu shots are most important for older adults since the age group generally accounts for 70% to 85% of flu-related deaths and 50% to 70% of flu-related hospitalizations each flu season. 

Despite the “internet myths” you will not get the flu from the vaccine. Some people get a sore arm for a day or so, but that is about the only down side. The up sides are many, including avoiding hospitalization or death for you and your loved ones.

For more information on flu shots for the elderly members of your family, read this article.

Within the next few months, we expect to have one or more vaccines for COVID-19. Frontline medical personnel, first responders and the elderly (over 65) are at greatest risk from this disease. CDC states that 8 of 10 COVID-19 deaths in the US have been people 65 years of age or older. We need to focus efforts on protecting those people at the highest risk.

For more information, read this article.

Dr Amesh Adalja, a Senior Scholar at the Johns Hopkins Center for Heath Security, talks about safety guidelines for gyms and workout classes.

Read the article.

This National Geographic article provides a comprehensive update on COVID-19 vaccine development–focusing on the progress of nine notable candidates. This unprecedented scientific effort is the equivalent of completing the Manhattan and Apollo programs in less than a year.

“More than 150 coronavirus vaccines are in development across the world—and hopes are high to bring one to market in record time to ease the global crisis. Several efforts are underway to help make that possible, including the U.S. government’s Operation Warp Speed initiative, which has pledged $10 billion and aims to develop and deliver 300 million doses of a safe, effective coronavirus vaccine by January 2021.”

Read the full National Geographic article