Coronavirus

Follow up: looks like men more likely to die (sorry can't do much about that!) Also just read a case study from Wuhan doctors and note that three quarters of the critically ill early last month were anorexic, so keep eating!

In response to Sparklefizz and Greeneyedgirl, I can say that neither OH nor I have received any information from our surgery.

It is interesting to note that for the last 2-3 weeks the information we have from China suggests that about 25% of known cases are in critical condition, presumably in intensive care. It looks as though the death rate is quite low so let's assume the treatment is reasonably successful though nobody is calling it a cure.

Now fast forward to lots of cases in the UK (seems to be growing all the time). Do we think that our hospitals (so understaffed and permanently now in crisis), will be able to deal with hundreds of critically ill patients?

With such a long incubation period (we are told at present) there is probably little chance of avoiding this virus. And what happens if your flast, area, town, is quarantined? And who remembers that Asian flu of the 50s? We certainly didn't have fresh bread for a while - don't know about other supplies as I was a child at the time.

So .... what to do? I would suggest a few inexpensive precautions:

If at all possible get lots of sleep as deprivation affects the immune system. This is possibly what is killing medical personnel who work so tirelessly for their patients in all countries.

Stock up on all the basics in case the current infrastructure fails due to lack of well people or quarantining or sudden panic buying. Includes loo paper, candles, matches, wipes and food and water (see below).

Have 2 weeks supply of drinking water - costs just over £1 per 5 litre bottle in my local supermarket. Have at least 14 litres, as we all use 1 litre per person per day.

Stock up on tinned or bottled food - this might be a bit more expensive but you can always eat it later if the pandemic passes.

Hopefully we never need the above but just in case...

I think all surgeries have sent information out via email and text

Have there been any adverts in TV suggesting that you should self -isolate and ring 111 or whatever the number is?

Hasn't everyone received an email from their doctor's practice giving advice, or is it just me?

Along with having very short supply of masks and gloves in China, they are now running out of condoms - as people are using them as finger covers when using ATM machines, apartment block entrance keypads etc.

Just to save us all reading the BBC news:

*Health officials have contacted hundreds of conference attendees in London, after it emerged one of them was later diagnosed with coronavirus.

The person, who has not been identified, was at the UK Bus Summit at the QEII Conference Centre last week.

Labour MP Lilian Greenwood was also at the conference, and said she was well, but was cancelling public engagements until 20 February as a precaution.*

Bit panicky of Lilian Greenwood eh? Shame about those 1300 dead people in China, but well, there's are 000s more living out there, what's an odd 000 deaths......I must go and lie down, feeling quite ironic today.

Have you ever tried to ring 111?
Nobody answers.

I’m heading out to get my extra pairs of marigolds now. If we all wear them then we wont look odd. Hubby says there is nothing to worry about as he can remember going to Hong Kong when the SARS virus was supposedly running rampage but I do feel worried.

No ideaabout tv, as I rarely watch it.but the matter has come up a number of times on R4. As a news item, in news interviews with those directly involved with organsising the NHS response and, I think, on You and Yours.

I would imagine most local radio stations would have covered the subject.

It’s about time that excuse for a PM got off his flabby backside and did something proactive.

Boris never does anything without Dom C's say so and the latter is busy sacking anyone in government who disagrees with him so he's a bit busy at the moment.

Pointless worrying about something that's out of our control.

It’s about time that excuse for a PM got off his flabby backside and did something proactive. It’s clear that this woman hadn’t got the message.

Have there been any adverts in TV suggesting that you should self -isolate and ring 111 or whatever the number is?

If so they have bypassed me.

Well, as I said, the last time we had one of these viruses SARS/MERS, I cannot remember which. Government calmly and carefully planned for the worst and made their preparations and bought in millions of doses of the necessary drugs. Then the doomsayers started talking of 10s of thousands of deaths.

In fact the number of cases and deaths in the UK was very samll indeed. What evidence is there it will be any different this time?

I accept that there could be a pandemic with many cases in the UK, but currently the vast majority are not at any risk at all and the doomsday scenarios have no well documented facts to support them.

As far as I am concernd it is a question of Keep calm and have a cup of tea. Things may change, but all the doom mongering and alarmist talk doe is work people up to a state that if things do get serious they start panicking and running round like headless chickens. A calm, reasoned and watchful approach to the problem is the one most likely to get us all safely through such an emergency.

Looking back the woman with a virus who took a taxi to hospital, ignoring all advice about what to do if you suspected you may have the disease, probably did what she did because she was in a panic and not thinking in a rational manner. That is how viruses like this spread.

The CDC released a statement indicating that they think it's only a matter of time before an outbreak in the US and that it will be here for years to come-

You can be creative and logical at the same time. Logic says this is going to get a lot worse, but at the same time we can go out laughing.

That sounds lovely. It would cheer us up as we all collapse in the streets and breathe our last, or haven't the doomsayers quite reached that level yet?

Great idea Monica. Any entrepreneurs on here? How about a range of pretty face masks, yellow or flowery to match the gloves.

Less problem than you think *MamCaz. Cotton masks offer as much protection as a pair of gloves and nobody raises any problems about getting them on and off.

It is actually quite easy really, take one glove off while wearing the other, then grasp part of the inside of the glove you have removed and remove the second glove. Use a tissue to pick them up and drop them in a bucket of disinfectant. Do it before or after the front door, use tissue to remove key from lock and then drop the keys into a cup of antiseptic or bleach

The sensible thing would be to wear rubber gloves, ideally disposable latex, which can just be thrown out, but accepting these can be very uncomfortable to wear for any time, plus latex allergies, I suggest a well fitting pair of yellow marigolds, held in place aat the wrist with bright blue rubber bands. You could have three or four pairs of these, one dry, clean pair by the front door, and the other three pairs making their way through the disinfectant drying process.

Think how bright and cheerful the streets would look with all those pops of bright yellow dotting the landscape like daffodils.

Personally, I struggle see how wearing gloves helps very much, unless (as with masks), wearing them makes the wearer less likely to touch his or her face - doubtful, I imagine, as most of us would seem to do that without even realizing -or unless the virus can enter through cuts on the hands. I don't know how likely/possible that is.

Then, when you get home, how do you remove your potentially contaminated (close-fitting) gloves and get them straight in the washing machine without touching them? And do you remove them before or after you have rooted in your bag or pocket for your house keys?

The most common way to pick up this virus is to transfer it to your face via your hands. Apparently we touch our faces, unconsciously, several times an hour. Children even more so.

A virologist in TV last night said, that while wearing a mask will help stop the spread by droplet infection, they real value of a mask is that you can’t transfer it from your hands to your face.

Worth thinking about.

NotTooOld I would definitely postpone your trip. It's not necessary and you have an underlying medical problem. I don't see any point in putting yourself and family at risk.

The greatest risk this virus poses is to Britains and the world's economy. The death rate of those infected by percentage is very low. However, the virus does appear to make most of those infected incapable of working for at least ten to fourteen days.

Therefore, should the virus expand to become an epidemic then many businesses could have their output or production drastically reduced or cease completely. The above situation in China has already affected the world supply chain with JCB in Britain announcing yesterday that it was curtailing production due to shortage of components by way of the virus impact on supplies from China.

If a large section of Britains population begins to change the way in which they carry out their everyday lives in not travelling, taking holidays, avoiding shopping trips etc, then that will set the UK on course for a deep economic recession and if practised widely throughout the world, then we could all witness an economic depression such has not been witnessed in nearly one hundred years.

As stated, the death rate from this virus is very low and the most favourable way of avoiding any impact from the illness is for all to carry on their everyday lives as normal, or as normal as possible dependent on the progression of the illness.

Anyway, my contribution to the above is to be of to our offices and put in a normal days work, and that I shall do for as long as I am capable in not having this virus.

As corporal Jones would shout in Dads Army, Don't Panic.....Don't Panic.

I daresay we'll all be wearing gloves and masks (if we can find them) if things progress! I don't think it's clear yet about transmission. They seem to think that the uber driver who took the London patient to hospital doesn't have to self isolate although he wasn't wearing a mask so that says something.

If it can be caught by touching something with the virus on it. Why not wear gloves?