By Laurel Dowswell and Charu Suri

The Interconnectivity Of The Global Community Is A Powerful Force For Tremendous Good. Our Commonalities And Collaborations Bring Us Closer Together Each Day. With The Global Pandemic Of Covid-19 Upon Us, Much Of The World Is Suffering Greatly.

What Connects Us, Has Now Made Us Vulnerable. We Are Being Stretched To Our Limits Physically, Emotionally, And Spiritually. But We Must Focus On The Facts To Gain Clarity — And Get Through This Together. We Need To Be Physically Distant At This Tragic Time, But Realize We Are Not Alone.

said Lauren Mellina, RN, who works at a top hospital in New Jersey. She advises people not to downplay this virus.

COVID-19 is an infectious disease caused by a new (novel) coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2. It is spread primarily through droplets of saliva or discharge from the nose when an infected person coughs or sneezes. It causes mild to moderate respiratory symptoms for most of the people that become infected but can progress to severe respiratory distress, organ failure, and even death.

The most vulnerable populations, and those who are most likely to develop serious symptoms, are older people and those with underlying health conditions such as chronic respiratory disease, cardiovascular disease, cancer, and others with compromised immune systems. The first cases of CO- VID-19 were discovered in Wuhan, China, and the disease, as of March 2020, has spread throughout out most countries of the world.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), the most common symptoms of COVID-19 are fever, tiredness, and dry cough. Other symptoms can also include shortness of breath, aches and pains, and sore throat. A small percent- age of people pl e have reported diarrhea, rhea nausea, or a runny nose.

Many who have experienced the virus attest that the symptoms can vary and may be inconsistent with what others have experienced. Many experience no symptoms at all: these are the “asymptomatic” patients.

Janice Pride-Boone, MD, a Harvard a Medical School gradu- ate who works at the Berkshire Medical Center in Pittsfield, Mass., says that asymptomatic carriers can also be significant contributors to spreading the virus. “You don’t know what percentage of people have had it in the house, so you need to play it safe and be cautious and assume you have it,” she advises.

As an essential healthcare worker who is a pediatrician, Dr. Pride-Boone says that she tries to do telehealth whenever possible. “If you are coughing, you must wear a mask,” she advises so that your highly infectious germs are not spread.

She says that even though people are very anxiety-prone right now, that anxiety will lower your immunity levels, so the best thing you can do is to try and get a good night’s rest. “Also, if you don’t sleep, your cells (to combat this virus) are not as effective; rest and a balanced diet are important.”

The virus lives on metal and plastic surfaces for three days, and can also be airborne in a place where there are many people with COVID-19 symptoms. Since it is highly contagious, experts advise that you frequently wash your hands with soap and water and stop touching your face. Disinfecting highly-used surfaces twice or thrice a day is also a good idea.

“80 percent of the people who are going to get COVID-19 will be fine. 20 percent will have a cytokine reaction, and these are typically those who have underlying medical issues,” said Dr. Pride-Boone.

Cytokine reactions happen when your body produces too much inflammation as a response to the foreign particle.

she added.

She advises staying home if the symptoms are manageable, and to visit the hospital if you have any difficulty breathing. Since hospitals can be hotbeds for the virus, it is more important to prevent catching something you don’t have, and speak to your physician over the phone to determine if you need to go in.

said Lauren Mellina, RN, who works at a top hospital in New Jersey. She advises people not to downplay this virus. “My fellow healthcare workers and I are living this. We walk into what feels like a war zone each day,” she said. “We are intubating patients back to back, coding one patient after another.”

Ms. Mellina describes patients as suffering, aching, fatigued, and helpless to the air hunger caused by the virus. “On top of it, they’re lonely, isolated in a room with no visitors.”

She said that relatives of patients have now resorted to calling her hospital, begging to intubate their loved ones, and making a case as to why they deserve a ventilator.

These Are Tips Shared By The World Health Organization (Who), And Several Health Experts:

STAY AT HOME as much as possible, and practice social distancing if you need to go out for groceries etc.;

WEAR A MASK. While N95 particle filter masks are generally used by the professional medical community, surgical masks can do the trick for everyday use;

WASH YOUR HANDS regularly with soap and water;

AVOID TOUCHING YOUR FACE;

MAINTAIN AT LEAST A SIX-FOOT DISTANCE between you and people coughing or sneezing;

REFRAIN FROM SMOKING and other activities that weaken the lungs;

COVER YOUR MOUTH AND NOSE WHEN COUGHING OR SNEEZING;

GET A GOOD NIGHT’S SLEEP: a chronic lack of sleep can weaken your immune system;

Although there is little evidence that vitamin C can boost your immunity levels against the coronavirus, maintain a BAL- ANCED DIET AND NUTRITION;

SANITIZE FREQUENTLY-USED OR TOUCHED SURFACES with recommended cleaners such as Lysol or Clorox (taking care not to let the abrasive bleach ruin your surfaces). Soap and water also work.

• Dr. Janice Pride-Boone is a Board-Certified, Harvard-trained Pediatrician and Certified Marriage and Family Therapist with additional training in Christian Counseling. She earned her Doctor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School in Boston, MA and completed her residency at Johns Hopkins University Hospital in Baltimore, MD and Georgetown University in Washington, DC, where she was recognized “Most Outstanding Teaching Resident” while at Georgetown University. She received her undergraduate degree in Biology with Honors from Barnard College of Columbia University in New York City.