Coughs and sneezes spread COVID19

This week, the first case has been confirmed in our city of this new strain of coronavirus, and at the same time the powers that be have said that if it becomes a pandemic there may not be treatment for people that would be considered less likely to survive – that is probably our little one.

Frightening right? This thing which can spread so easily is not fatal to most healthy people so they don’t take it very seriously but to the people they can easily spread it to it is fatal.

It had already been a dangerous winter before the outbreak and our family have rarely left our house together over the winter months.

Those are just the harsh realities of sickness, this isn’t anything new, it is the same situation with flu.

Where I really struggle is when I head out to a supermarket to get supplies and somebodies child is walking around coughing and sneezing without covering their mouth and with the adult never advising them to do so (when did we stop teaching this to our children?).

That is difficult to put up with knowing that they could be carrying a sniffle which could leave my child in intensive care for which the germs are being spread all over the packets and products in the store…. And these are just the ones I witnessed.

What is unforgivable though is that I see fully grown adults doing the same thing on a regular basis, how wonderful it is to see an adult belt out a number of uncovered, open mouthed coughs directly towards all the food products just in front of them.

Is it ignorance or selfishness, I don’t know but it certainly tests my patience.

It is crazy that the spread of dangerous diseases is so easily stifled by following a few steps which I’m sure will be shared far and wide but I'll sing that same song here because people don’t seem to get it.

WASH – That shouldn’t really need explaining but to some it does, which is worrying. Wash your hands (properly), ALL THE TIME. How ever much you’re doing it… it’s not enough.

COVER YOUR COUGHS – and your sneezes too. Absolutely incredible how many people don’t do this. The best way is to use a tissue, bin it and wash hands.

However, it usually catches us unawares so if you can, cough or sneeze into your elbow rather than your hands (wash that area too when you can but you usually get sick from touching your face with your hands after coming into contact and spread through handshakes and touching surfaces).

STAY HOME – This is a big one, so many people carry on with life when they’re sick thinking that they are brave and no nonsense, but they are putting lives in danger and it is selfish. Stay at home and get it cleared.

One of the main pieces of advice when this latest sickness outbreak came out was that if you think you have symptoms DO NOT LEAVE YOUR HOME.

Contact NHS direct or your GP over the telephone and if your symptoms match, they will help you in a way that stops the disease spreading.

Since then I have spoken to friends who told me they went straight to A and E because they thought they had symptoms and I’ve spoke to healthcare workers who said they were struggling to keep up with the people coming in who think they have COVID 19.

So, with this highly infectious sickness worry they go to the local hospital where all the sick, elderly and disabled people are, because they didn’t think beyond themselves.

Now that its in our city we’re pretty afraid, strongly considering pulling our eldest out of school and staying at home unless completely necessary as a death sentence for our youngest is not far from home.

Hopefully this fright will come and go quickly but there is always something new around the corner as well as the ever-prevalent flu.

Hopefully this will be a wake-up call for many people.

Stay-safe