COVID-19 Pandemic

There has been an overload of information concerning the Covid-19 pandemic facing our country and the globe at large.

As expected a lot of us remain anxious and in panic about the unfolding events and I hope this will enable us to somewhat dispel some of this panic.

1. Do you know what Covid-19 is? – It is a communicable disease of zoonotic origin (initial spread from contact with an animal) that was confirmed in Dec 2019 in China and is now spreading through human – human transmission.
2. Do you know how Covid-19 is spread? – Spread occurs when an infected person coughs/ sneezes and the droplets get into contact with your mucous membranes through the eyes, nose, lips or mouth
3. Do you know the symptoms of Covid-19 infection? – The main symptoms are very similar to flu symptoms including:-

• Cough
• Sneezing
• Fever
• Sore throat
• Difficulty in breathing / shortness of breath
• Severe respiratory tract infections.

4. Do you know who can be infected? – People of all age, gender, race, ethnicity, religion etc. can be infected. The elderly and those with comorbid conditions such as heart disease, chronic respiratory diseases etc are at a higher risk.

Thankfully, for yet unknown reasons, children are faring extremely well globally with very few (if any) reported deaths resulting from corona virus infection.

5. Do you know how you can prevent infection?

–          By practicing good hand hygiene through thorough hand washing with soap and water (for at least 20 seconds) and sanitizing with an alcohol based sanitizer (above 70% alcohol content for at least 20 seconds);

• Coughing / sneezing onto the inner side of the elbow
• Avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth with unwashed hands
• Social-distancing (avoiding crowds)
• Clean and disinfect surfaces that are frequently touched – e.g. door handles, light switches, toilet handles, staircase rails, lift buttons etc.

(Whenever possible avoid touching surfaces as the virus is said to survive for even more than 3 days on inanimate objects).

-Self-isolation when you feel unwell i.e. stay home and monitor your symptoms from home and only leave to go to the hospital if symptoms worsen.

A lot if not all of the information above is known to you, therefore proving that you know a lot of what you should and that you do have power in how you play a part in the spread and in the prevention of Covid-19. You therefore also have the power to protect not only yourself but your loved ones, your colleagues, the vulnerable aging community and the society at large.

A few pointers that may not be above:-

• Avoid visiting hospitals un-necessarily – call those in hospital for whatever reason and reassure them without having to physically go there.
• Avoid social media overload of material that is mostly unconfirmed and untrue – for valid information please visit the WHO website which gives a lot of updated authentic information.
• Educate your home workers who may not have access to this information and ensure they too wash their hands thoroughly especially when they leave your home for whatever reason (off-day, market etc.).
• Take a minute or two every hour to look around/ take a walk and appreciate the wonder that nature is.
• Before you sleep, think about 3 things you are grateful for every day, and when you wake, think of 3 things you hope to achieve in the day (this should be the very last and very first things after turning off/ before turning on your cell phone.
• Talk to your children about what is going on – keep it honest and age appropriate. They easily sense our anxiety and they feed off it so work on keeping yourself calm so it reflects the same to them.

Finally, remember to pray for the situation we now find ourselves in – that the Lord who is all knowing (and is not shocked or surprised by this turn of events) will give us the wisdom and strength, as a globe to fight this disease and be cognizant of the fact that there are lessons we must learn from this experience.

 Written By:

Dr. Sheila Kamuyu