Transcript:
BOTH:
Hello!
SEAN FORBES:
What is coronavirus?
DR. MICHAEL MCKEE:
This coronavirus is called COVID-19, one of different kinds of coronaviruses. We’ve given it a sign name, signed either way. Anyways, that particular virus originated in China before it started to spread to a lot of other places in the world. It has arrived in the United States. The last thing that I heard is that there’s already confirmed cases in 43 states now.
FORBES:
Why should we be concerned?
So, cases with this type of coronavirus are more severe among the older population and among people who have health problems. For example, those with diabetes, cancer, heart problems or what you might call immunity system problems. So, those people seem to be more susceptible to falling ill. We want to protect this particular group of people. The more we do to reduce the outbreak, the more we’ll be able to protect this vulnerable population from being affected. In China, most of the information that we know and have been learning about the coronavirus, seems to come from there because it’s where the virus originated. More specifically, it originated in a big city called Wuhan before spreading into the world. In the city of Wuhan, the virus has killed between 3-4% of the people there. Some of them were on the younger side.
FORBES:
3 to 4%?
DR. MCKEE:
Between 3-4%, yes, but they noticed that among older people, especially those older than 80, the virus has a 15% mortality rate. So, that’s where the concern is with this severe outbreak. However, there is one thing to consider is that there are cities in China where there is a lot of pollution so that leads to a lot of breathing problems. Also, there’s an increased rate of smoking, but it still remains to be seen whether or not we have similar smoking rates as they do. We’d prefer to be safe instead of having similar rates here and having no planning set up. That’s the reason why we’ve been hearing about many of these schools’ closings and shutdowns. Also, people are being encouraged to stay home and avoid any contact. That’s the reason why there’s been concern about the outbreak.
FORBES:
I’m curious. How can we take steps to prevent ourselves from getting COVID-19?
DR. MCKEE:
So, um, yes, it’s important to know what preventative steps to take. There are ways to do this. First, we can do what’s called “social distancing”. What’s being recommended is that we avoid being around other people. If you go out in the public, you should maintain a 6-foot distance with people. If a sick person sneezes or coughs, they will release particles in the area. Keeping a 6-foot distance would reduce the risk of air droplets landing on you. Another way to prevent contracting the virus, which is also common sense, is to wash your hands with soap and water. That’s on the top of the list! We also have hand sanitizers which do work, but make sure to look at the back of the container and check if the alcohol level is at 60% or above. It’s an interesting thing, washing your hands with soap and water. The soap water will wipe away the virus particles while the hand sanitizer actually deactivates the virus temporarily. If I had to choose a preference, I think the best way to do it is by washing your hands.
FORBES:
That brings me to a question that someone else has mentioned to me: that a hot bath or hot shower can help reduce the risk of contracting the virus. Is that true?
DR. MCKEE:
So, if I had to go to work where I’m potentially exposed then I come back home, taking a shower or washing my hands would certainly help reduce the risk. I’d change my clothes whenever I can because I’m often away from home. As a doctor at a higher risk of being exposed, I’ll take showers especially because I want to reduce the risk of passing it onto my family and friends.
FORBES:
What about the face masks?
DR. MCKEE:
So, we want to try to encourage people to avoid wearing these masks. If they do have some available, some people may feel more confident wearing them. If you’ve worn these masks before, you might’ve noticed that they’re not comfortable. What would you do if you need to move it and adjust the mask? With your hands? That could potentially increase the risk of you touching your face which you shouldn’t do. I’d recommend that you avoid touching your eyes, nose or mouth. If wearing the mask helps you remember not to touch your face, then that should work fine. Most people aren’t used to wearing these masks so they may try to adjust their mask leading to increased touching of their faces.
FORBES:
That brings me to another question about deaf people who touch their faces when they sign. So, do you recommend that we avoid touching our faces as we sign and to keep our distance?
DR. MCKEE:
That’s difficult to do. I’m guilty of that also. It’s natural for us to sign and we unconsciously touch our faces often. So, what I’d recommend is for us to wash our hands frequently. Most of the time people will wash their hands quickly, only for 1-2 seconds. I’d recommend washing