KSST reached out to a local physician for an update on Corona virus in our area. The physician, who because of HIPPA restriction must remain anonymous, stated his practice has not seen any illness related to COVID-19.
One patient did come to the practice with a cough, and requested Corona virus testing. The patient was not able to provide one of the required samples. The widely available test needs both an oral cavity swab, and a sputum sample. This particular patient had no travel history, and aside from the test request, would not have been considered for COVID-19 testing.
Our contact wishes to express these final thoughts.
- Be vigilant, but there is no need to panic.
- Be clean. Touching a surface where the virus has landed, and then touching your mouth, nose, or eyes could cause an infection.
- Remember that the virus most likely spreads from person to person via coughs and sneezes. i.e. airborne droplets.
- Deploying excessive amounts of aerosol disinfectants will probably do more harm than good. Those chemicals could irritate your airway.
- Soap and warm water washing for your hands still trumps all those alcohol hand ‘santizers’. Soap removes oils from your hands. COVID-19 likes those oils. Scrub gently and count to 20.
