Orange County Health Authority Dr. Calvin Parker said he has never seen a virus that is so deadly and contagious as the novel coronavirus.
“I don’t think we can take this seriously enough,” he told Gary Stelly Thursday on KOGT’s Morning Show.
The main way to protect yourself is to isolate yourself and restrict contact with others, he said.
As an example, he said a hermit in the woods has no exposure. However, every person the hermit comes in contact with increases his chances of catching the disease.
“Keep in mind, the more people you come in contact with, the more risk you have,” he said.
Stories about the deadly virus have been circulating for almost three months.
“In the beginning, I thought maybe we’re over worrying about this,” he said. Now, he wonders “are we taking this seriously enough?”
With people isolating themselves, “we can slow it down so our (medical) system can catch up and we can catch up with tests,” he said.
The Covid-19 disease caused by the novel coronavirus is spread mainly through the respiratory system by contact with the nose, mouth, or eyes. Droplets from an infected person can be spread in the air and left on surfaces.
The Centers for Disease Control says symptoms can appear between two to 14 days after exposure, which means people who do not know they have the virus can spread it.
Washing hands thoroughly and not touching your face is a good preventative, Dr. Parker said.
Covid-19 stands for COrona, VIrus, Disease discovered in 2019. It was first detected in China and has now spread through almost every country, which qualifies it as a pandemic. It is spreading quickly through Europe with Italy having almost as many deaths as China.
Parker told Stelly there are lots of coronavirus strains around that cause things like the common cold. One of the problems discerning the new, deadly strain, is that its symptoms are like a cold, influenza, or even allergies. Spring tree pollen now is spreading around Orange County causing allergies.
That’s why he is urging anyone with symptoms like a cough, runny nose, and low-grade fever to call their physician to get instructions on what to do. People should not go to a doctor’s office or medical facility without calling to get instructions.
Covid-19 also causes a shortness of breath.
He said the Orange County Health Department is answering questions for people who do not have a physician.
People who have underlying health issues like diabetes or heart conditions should especially contact someone if they have symptoms.
Testing for the disease is conducted with a health professional collecting a swab sample from inside the nose or the back of the throat. Or, the patient can give sputum. The tests have to be sent off to laboratories and currently there is about a 48-hour wait for a result. He said he hopes the testing results can soon be returned after a few hours.
One of the problems with testing, he said, is that the health care profession taking the samples must be wearing a protective suit and headgear that looks “almost like an astronaut.”
He said it is almost impossible for him and his staff in a small office to conduct the tests because of the equipment requirements.
Medical care professionals do not want people walking into a facility and spreading the virus to other patients and employees. Doctors and nurses are also now doing “telepracticing” through video on the internet.
Parker said Orange County will be conducting more testing and is working on a drivee -up site. The site, though, will be for people referred for a test.
Orange County has survived through hurricanes and will keep going through this disaster. “We’re going to survive it,” he said. “It’s just going to be a tough time.”
Parker is a local family physician who grew up in Orange and graduated from Little Cypress-Mauriceville High School. He returned to Orange after completing medical school and training. He has had a private family practice for more than 20 years.
He said Orange County does not have many physicians and he his name was “picked out of the hat” to serve the county as the health authority.
-Margaret Toal, KOGT-
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