Some Information About Coronavirus Disease

People Need Reliable Information on In-Home COVID-19 Care

Corona virus

Source: Photo by Annie Spratt on Unsplash

Far more needs to be done to help those isolated at home with coronavirus symptoms. The American medical system is stretched to capacity, leaving hundreds of thousands of people unable to get medical attention for their mild to moderate COVID-19 symptoms. 

Misinformation about the virus–how it spreads, who it infects, how to treat it–is rampant online. A recent report from the Paris-based Reboot Foundation found that nearly ⅓ of Americans held misconceptions about COVID-19. They believe things like rinsing your nasal passages with saline would prevent an infection, or that the virus is man-made. The director-general of the World Health Organization said recently that the world is not only fighting the coronavirus epidemic, but also an "infodemic."

Rampant misinformation hampers those who are seeking reliable and safe at-home treatments. The President’s recent suggestion that injecting a “disinfectant” should be studied as a possible treatment only adds to the confusion and obscures the medically-sound treatments that doctors know are effective. The fact that, in the days after President Trump’s comments, Maryland officials received hundreds of inquiries about the safety of ingesting cleaning products underscores the extent to which people will go to fend off COVID-19, and their need for measured, fact-based treatments and advice.

To help combat misinformation and to help those managing COVID-19 at home, a group of emergency doctors and the American College of Emergency Physicians have collaborated on a comprehensive clearinghouse of reliable, vetted coronavirus resources developed specifically for in-home caregivers. It is free to the public, and it outlines useful steps people can take to improve their health and speed their recovery. For example, it includes videos – in both English and Spanish – on how to create a household action plan, and on how to do breathing exercises to relieve chest congestion. The toolkit also explains how to use a pulse oximeter to track oxygen levels in your blood, a key metric for determining when to seek urgent medical attention.

Covid-19

The CDC offers many free resources for COVID-19 patients at home. It recommends that they track their symptoms and the progression of the illness. Having that information at hand will help healthcare providers understand how to help if you should seek or need hospital care. One way to do this is count breaths, and if someone is taking over 30 breaths a minute, they need to call their doctor immediately. 

Of course, no information found online should substitute for expert medical advice. Anyone with coronavirus symptoms should be in contact with their doctors or clinic. Older patients, as well as those with conditions such as diabetes, heart disease, cancer, immunocompromised states, asthma, or COPD are at greater risk and should contact their doctor as early as possible if exposed to COVID-19 or if they develop symptoms of possible illness. 

With several states, like Georgia and Texas, beginning to reopen businesses and lift stay-at-home orders despite a dearth of widespread testing, it will be incumbent on individuals to keep themselves safe. That starts with staying informed and maintaining their own health in ways that will limit the virus’ spread.

The reality is that up to 80 percent of COVID-19 cases are not severe and will not require a hospital visit. Nevertheless, even “mild” symptoms can be unpleasant and must be carefully monitored so that we flatten the curve and slow the spread until a vaccine is developed. That can’t happen unless people have easy access to reliable advice on how to care for themselves and loved ones.