URGENT CALL: To beat the coronavirus pandemic, all states should follow CA’s lead and be on a ‘stay at home’ order

THE WAR against the coronavirus pandemic that has caught the world by surprise in January has made us all feel like the normal, free, and vibrant life we lived just three months ago feel like ages ago.

No matter how much we resist it, no matter how uncomfortable and vulnerable it makes us feel, this is our new reality for now, and how this war will eventually end will depend so much on the decisions and actions we make right now.

As of press time, the coronavirus pandemic has surpassed one million in the number of people infected, killing more than 56,000 people, with more than 223,000+ recovered.

Here in the United States, there are more than 265,000 cases recorded and growing, with a death toll of more than 6,766, with 11,983+ recovered.

In the Philippines, there have been 3,018+ confirmed cases, 136+ deaths, and 56+ recovered.

The battle isn’t over. Here in the U.S, we are just approaching the apex, where we experience the surge in the number of confirmed cases of coronavirus infected people, and consequently, the worst days of the pandemic.

With the limited resources available in our health care system — hospitals beds, ICU, medical equipment and supplies, personnel like doctors, nurses, healthcare workers — the goal is to delay the worst day so that our health system will not be overwhelmed, thereby having a better chance and means to effectively treat infected people toward recovery instead of death.

The Sacramento Bee newspaper in California, home to the most number of Filipinos living in the United States, recently reported that “The University of Washington’s Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, founded in 2007 with support from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and the state of Washington, has released dynamic projections showing when deaths from COVID-19 will peak in each state. The model assumes social distancing continues until the end of May.” [It is updated regularly as new data about the spread of the disease is reported].

According to the model, “California will see its worst day on April 26, when 119 of its residents will die from COVID-19. By comparison, New York will see its worst day on April 10, when 855 of its residents will die. Florida will peak on May 4, when around 175 residents will die, and Texas will peak on May 6, when around 161 residents will die.”

The optimistic news that the preventative measures are working is corroborated by actual numbers in California, especially from the San Francisco Bay Area.

California was the first state to issue stay-at-home shelter-in-place orders effective March 19, while the San Francisco Bay Area’s shelter-in-place order took effect on March 17. New York followed California’s lead, and NY Governor Andrew Cuomo has ordered the shutdown of all non-essential businesses in the state (with the cooperation of New Jersey and Connecticut) except for essential services beginning March 20.

As NowThisPolitics reported on Thursday, April 3, this drastic proactive preventative measures implemented by California could very well be the “reason why California has not become a hotspot like New York or New Jersey. New York has a population of nearly 20 million, and has seen 92,381 cases. California’s population is nearly double that—39.56 million in 2018—but has just 10,018 cases in California, including 216 deaths.”

Politico reported that since California’s shelter-in-place order was issued, “after 14 days — the outermost period at which symptoms are believed to emerge post-infection — doctors at area hospitals are now reporting fewer cases than they expected to see at this point, and officials credit the lockdown with stemming the tide of patients they feared would flood into emergency rooms.”

In a TV interview on CNN with Jake Tapper, Governor Newsom challenged other governors who had not yet issued stay-at-home orders with a simple question: “What are you waiting for? What more evidence do you need? … There’s no greater intervention, period, full stop, none, than physical distancing.”

Indeed, all the state governors should be proactive and decisive now, in the absence of true leadership in the White House.

The success of these preventative measures is contingent upon us. The sooner and the better we comply with these orders, the sooner will the return to our normal life will be.

Take SOCIAL DISTANCING seriously as if your life depends on it because it does. Experts are now saying that the COVID-19 could also be transmitted just by breathing or talking with an infected person within 6 feet distance.

WARNING: You may be fined, issued citation or imprisoned if you do not obey the orders, pursuant to the rule of law.

There are a lot more we will find out as new information come out about this virus. But for now, the best thing we can do is to faithfully obey the orders so we will win over the threat of the coronavirus pandemic:

SOCIAL DISTANCING:

• Avoid close contact

• Avoid close contact with people who are sick

• Stay home at home unless going to the hospital, buy groceries, medicine, or walk as allowed by the order

• Put distance between yourself and other people 6 feet minimum.

• Remember that some people without symptoms may be able to spread the virus.

• Keeping distance from others is especially important for people who are at higher risk of getting very sick.

BETTER HYGIENE:

• Clean your hands often

• Wash your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds especially after you have been in a public place, or after blowing your nose, coughing, or sneezing.

• If soap and water are not readily available, use a hand sanitizer that contains at least 60% alcohol. Cover all surfaces of your hands and rub them together until they feel dry.

• Avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth with unwashed hands.
Clean and disinfect

• Clean AND disinfect frequently touched surfaces daily. This includes tables, doorknobs, light switches, countertops, handles, desks, phones, keyboards, toilets, faucets, and sinks.

• If surfaces are dirty, clean them: Use detergent or soap and water prior to disinfection.

WEAR A FACE MASK, even just your do-it-yourself mask, or a reusable washable mask. Use this when you are going to the grocery or any enclosed space just in case you are positive but without symptoms and you do not know about it. There is a shortage of the N-95 and other isolation masks and these should be reserved for health personnel taking care of sick people.

IF YOU ARE SICK:

• You should wear a facemask when you are around other people (e.g., sharing a room or vehicle) and before you enter a healthcare provider’s office. If you are not able to wear a facemask (for example, because it causes trouble breathing), then you should do your best to cover your coughs and sneezes, and people who are caring for you should wear a facemask if they enter your room. Learn what to do if you are sick.

• If you are NOT sick: You do not need to wear an isolation facemask unless you are caring for someone who is sick (and they are not able to wear a facemask). Facemasks may be in short supply and they should be saved for caregivers.
Stay home if you’re sick

• Stay home if you are sick, except to get medical care.

Cover coughs and sneezes

• Cover your mouth and nose with a tissue when you cough or sneeze or use the inside of your elbow.

• Throw used tissues in the trash.

• Immediately wash your hands with soap and water for at least 20 seconds. If soap and water are not readily available, clean your hands with a hand sanitizer that contains at least 60% alcohol.

STAY SAFE. God bless us all.

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Gel Santos Relos has been in news, talk, public service and educational broadcasting since 1989 with ABS-CBN and is now serving the Filipino audience using different platforms, including digital broadcasting, and print, and is working on a new public service program for the community. You may contact her through email at [email protected], or send her a message via Facebook at Facebook.com/Gel.Santos.Relos.