March 27, 2020 "Safer at Home"
Our Governor Evers has locked us down a little more. He has recommended that all non essential workers stay home, except for trips to the grocery store or to pick up take out, the former ideally only every 2 weeks. Grocery stores are making time in the morning of some days entirely for elderly and those with preexisting conditions who still remain the most vulnerable to this disease in terms of death rates. We now know that young people also get the disease and end up in the hospital with it but they still seem to withstand the deadly effect on the lungs better. Essential workers are healthcare workers, pharmacy and drugstore workers, food supply workers at stores and at restaurants who do take out, first responders, goods transport, gas stations, energy workers, certain manufacturing workers making things necessary for safety, life, and supplies for all things needed in this emergency, home repair, news reporters and radio and TV workers, mass transit, airlines, cleaners and maintenance as well as waste management and garbage handling, and infrastructure. These businesses vary somewhat from state to state. For example, the production and sale of marijuana is deemed essential in California. Basically each state has decided what they deem essential for the safety of people's lives, and maintenance of their ability to stay safely in their homes.
New York state and especially New York City and surrounds are the epicenters currently in our country and our country now leads all countries in numbers of cases. It should be noted that we hold this record, mostly because we are dong more testing than any other country. And yet we still are probably missing the vast majority of the cases.. The actual number of infected is probably a multiplier of 5 or even 10 times this number of confirmed cases. Italy still leads the death toll and it is still mysterious why Italy has such a high death rate. We now have over 137,000 cases in the US and 2400 deaths. Every state has cases. Other highly effected areas are Florida, Louisiana, Washington State, and California. Chicago is also effected heavily. All of these areas are on different time lines toward their peak of cases based on how much they were seeded by travelers early and then how soon they began to close down schools, large events, and businesses.
Testing has advanced and not only can tests be pretty easily done, there is now a rapid test that gives a result in 15 minutes. My son, who is Chief of General Surgery at a large Midwestern University Health system, was especially anxious for that. He felt that without knowing whether a surgical patient was COVID 19 positive or not would endanger the entire operating room staff. To speed surgery electric cautery is widely used to stop bleeding during surgery, but this creates an aerosol that could be very infectious. On a COVID 19 positive case, perhaps cautery would not be used and this would lengthen the surgical time often dramatically and make for more surgical risk. Also testing now can be done by the patient in their drive through car, utilizing mostly just the anterior nose and throat which would induce less coughing and sneezing. Therefore the collecting healthcare worker doesn't need to wear as much Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), saving it for in hospital and clinic workers.
The shortage of this PPE has been a problem across the entire country. My son told me that their hospital was reusing N95 masks and using a period of UV light exposure to sterilize the masks inside a plastic bag. Multiple companies, especially garment makers have retooled to make N95 masks. 3M, the largest producer of these masks has hugely increased its output and is teaching other companies how to make them. Various local people here and there are making cloth masks and even stuffing them with feminine hygiene pads or coffee filters and providing them for some protection, not meeting hospital standards, but useful in other sites where there is required exposure to a large number of people. Small distilleries are using wasted amounts in their drinking alcohol production to produce hand sanitizers and are delivering them to local hospitals and other places that are in need. Various large manufacturers are retooling to make more venilators which are always in short supply
One thing that President Trump and his team have done very well is to involve the private sector in answering the many shortages and needs of the pandemic. Now private labs have stepped up to make rapid testing kits. Already the virus has been RNA sequenced and within 2 months the first group of people have gotten a vaccine for its first trial, totally skipping trial in animals. It also has been found that antimalarials may help treat this disease. Someone noted that countries or areas in Africa and in South America where people are on antimalarials don't seem to have many cases. A study was done in France that is very promising. These drugs are already being used and our government is allowing this as long as these patients are part of a study to get the data as the drugs are used. There is also a new antiviral, called remdesovir, ?sp. Many individual people and small groups of people have started to make masks and sew full body suits that protect our health care workers. Individuals and very small companies even with just s single 3D printer are making face shields. In other words, the movement against this virus and protection against it has been a combination of government management and gathering of the most up to date and wisest knowledge, of the private capitalistic production abilities of our big companies, and the small but just as dedicated efforts of tiny businesses and individual people. This massive effort though not making itself effective just yet on the illness numbers, will in the end defeat the virus. Our form of government and current leadership combined with our capitalistic economy will win in the long run.
The former paragraph sounds very positive and it is. But there is no doubt that we are taking a big hit both in illness which is overwhelming our healthcare system and has at least temporarily destroyed our economy. It is going to take a long time to come back from this. And my husband and I are no doubt going to be isolated in our home for many months even after others are going back to a more normal life because we are at so high a risk that we cannot take a chance on becoming infected.
One of the interesting things that has made a lot of news is the run on toilet paper. Why was that the one item that people hoarded and worried so about not having enough? This is still a mystery and will remain so, I guess. Another run on goods was the dramatically increased sale of guns and ammunition. There is certainly more reason behind this buying spree. This pandemic has led the prepper like me and many other people in addition to worrying about the disease and how to protect against getting it and the economic loss the mitigation of the disease has caused, to begin to think about what this combination could cause if it advances much further in society. That fear is that we would have a breakdown in society and great civil unrest. Preppers worry about protecting what they have gathered to weather this pandemic from those who might come to take what they have. Hence people want to buy a gun.
I am a prepper and I admit it. Some people laugh at this fact about me. If they could see me not worrying about getting to a grocery store now and just digging into my supply of freeze dried food, they would laugh less. But one thing I did not have was a gun. I did join a range club, take two courses on shooting, one for beginning shooters and one for learning about Conceal and Carry. I have shot two different hand guns a few times at the range, but I had never taken the step to buy a gun. I decided this was the time to do that. However, I had waited a little long, Many stores were out of 9 mm handguns. Then I tried to get some ammo and at least two gun stores that I called had none on their shelves. Finally I found a range and gunstore down in Racine, WI and was able to get a gun held for me as well as 2 boxes of 9 mm ammo, though I had only one choice there. The more expensive copper or brass coated shells were sold out. I just had to take metal jacket which I think is nickel. Then I could not take the gun with me that day, because there was a backup at the Department of the government that ok's background checks. I waited in the store a short time but the background check was put on delay. Two days later it had passed and I had to drive back down to Racine to pick up my gun. Soooo...... though I had planned to buy a gun all along, like many others, I was affected by the mass fear and effects of mob mentality and I went out and bought a gun. I didn't buy any toilet paper though so I didn't totally lose rational judgement.
I am going to do a little research on the drugs that might be useful for COVID 19, and on the vaccines. In the next report here I will try to give you some up to date info. There is some hope there. It is just gong to take some time to accomplish this.
Stay safe out there and practice the hygiene and physical distancing from others recommended by all health scientists. But don't practice social distancing. Call your loved ones. Call those you haven't talked to in years. Send emails, texts, and even snail mail cards to raise other spirits. And we will get through this.
Our Governor Evers has locked us down a little more. He has recommended that all non essential workers stay home, except for trips to the grocery store or to pick up take out, the former ideally only every 2 weeks. Grocery stores are making time in the morning of some days entirely for elderly and those with preexisting conditions who still remain the most vulnerable to this disease in terms of death rates. We now know that young people also get the disease and end up in the hospital with it but they still seem to withstand the deadly effect on the lungs better. Essential workers are healthcare workers, pharmacy and drugstore workers, food supply workers at stores and at restaurants who do take out, first responders, goods transport, gas stations, energy workers, certain manufacturing workers making things necessary for safety, life, and supplies for all things needed in this emergency, home repair, news reporters and radio and TV workers, mass transit, airlines, cleaners and maintenance as well as waste management and garbage handling, and infrastructure. These businesses vary somewhat from state to state. For example, the production and sale of marijuana is deemed essential in California. Basically each state has decided what they deem essential for the safety of people's lives, and maintenance of their ability to stay safely in their homes.New York state and especially New York City and surrounds are the epicenters currently in our country and our country now leads all countries in numbers of cases. It should be noted that we hold this record, mostly because we are dong more testing than any other country. And yet we still are probably missing the vast majority of the cases.. The actual number of infected is probably a multiplier of 5 or even 10 times this number of confirmed cases. Italy still leads the death toll and it is still mysterious why Italy has such a high death rate. We now have over 137,000 cases in the US and 2400 deaths. Every state has cases. Other highly effected areas are Florida, Louisiana, Washington State, and California. Chicago is also effected heavily. All of these areas are on different time lines toward their peak of cases based on how much they were seeded by travelers early and then how soon they began to close down schools, large events, and businesses.
Testing has advanced and not only can tests be pretty easily done, there is now a rapid test that gives a result in 15 minutes. My son, who is Chief of General Surgery at a large Midwestern University Health system, was especially anxious for that. He felt that without knowing whether a surgical patient was COVID 19 positive or not would endanger the entire operating room staff. To speed surgery electric cautery is widely used to stop bleeding during surgery, but this creates an aerosol that could be very infectious. On a COVID 19 positive case, perhaps cautery would not be used and this would lengthen the surgical time often dramatically and make for more surgical risk. Also testing now can be done by the patient in their drive through car, utilizing mostly just the anterior nose and throat which would induce less coughing and sneezing. Therefore the collecting healthcare worker doesn't need to wear as much Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), saving it for in hospital and clinic workers.
The shortage of this PPE has been a problem across the entire country. My son told me that their hospital was reusing N95 masks and using a period of UV light exposure to sterilize the masks inside a plastic bag. Multiple companies, especially garment makers have retooled to make N95 masks. 3M, the largest producer of these masks has hugely increased its output and is teaching other companies how to make them. Various local people here and there are making cloth masks and even stuffing them with feminine hygiene pads or coffee filters and providing them for some protection, not meeting hospital standards, but useful in other sites where there is required exposure to a large number of people. Small distilleries are using wasted amounts in their drinking alcohol production to produce hand sanitizers and are delivering them to local hospitals and other places that are in need. Various large manufacturers are retooling to make more venilators which are always in short supply
One thing that President Trump and his team have done very well is to involve the private sector in answering the many shortages and needs of the pandemic. Now private labs have stepped up to make rapid testing kits. Already the virus has been RNA sequenced and within 2 months the first group of people have gotten a vaccine for its first trial, totally skipping trial in animals. It also has been found that antimalarials may help treat this disease. Someone noted that countries or areas in Africa and in South America where people are on antimalarials don't seem to have many cases. A study was done in France that is very promising. These drugs are already being used and our government is allowing this as long as these patients are part of a study to get the data as the drugs are used. There is also a new antiviral, called remdesovir, ?sp. Many individual people and small groups of people have started to make masks and sew full body suits that protect our health care workers. Individuals and very small companies even with just s single 3D printer are making face shields. In other words, the movement against this virus and protection against it has been a combination of government management and gathering of the most up to date and wisest knowledge, of the private capitalistic production abilities of our big companies, and the small but just as dedicated efforts of tiny businesses and individual people. This massive effort though not making itself effective just yet on the illness numbers, will in the end defeat the virus. Our form of government and current leadership combined with our capitalistic economy will win in the long run.
The former paragraph sounds very positive and it is. But there is no doubt that we are taking a big hit both in illness which is overwhelming our healthcare system and has at least temporarily destroyed our economy. It is going to take a long time to come back from this. And my husband and I are no doubt going to be isolated in our home for many months even after others are going back to a more normal life because we are at so high a risk that we cannot take a chance on becoming infected.
One of the interesting things that has made a lot of news is the run on toilet paper. Why was that the one item that people hoarded and worried so about not having enough? This is still a mystery and will remain so, I guess. Another run on goods was the dramatically increased sale of guns and ammunition. There is certainly more reason behind this buying spree. This pandemic has led the prepper like me and many other people in addition to worrying about the disease and how to protect against getting it and the economic loss the mitigation of the disease has caused, to begin to think about what this combination could cause if it advances much further in society. That fear is that we would have a breakdown in society and great civil unrest. Preppers worry about protecting what they have gathered to weather this pandemic from those who might come to take what they have. Hence people want to buy a gun.
I am a prepper and I admit it. Some people laugh at this fact about me. If they could see me not worrying about getting to a grocery store now and just digging into my supply of freeze dried food, they would laugh less. But one thing I did not have was a gun. I did join a range club, take two courses on shooting, one for beginning shooters and one for learning about Conceal and Carry. I have shot two different hand guns a few times at the range, but I had never taken the step to buy a gun. I decided this was the time to do that. However, I had waited a little long, Many stores were out of 9 mm handguns. Then I tried to get some ammo and at least two gun stores that I called had none on their shelves. Finally I found a range and gunstore down in Racine, WI and was able to get a gun held for me as well as 2 boxes of 9 mm ammo, though I had only one choice there. The more expensive copper or brass coated shells were sold out. I just had to take metal jacket which I think is nickel. Then I could not take the gun with me that day, because there was a backup at the Department of the government that ok's background checks. I waited in the store a short time but the background check was put on delay. Two days later it had passed and I had to drive back down to Racine to pick up my gun. Soooo...... though I had planned to buy a gun all along, like many others, I was affected by the mass fear and effects of mob mentality and I went out and bought a gun. I didn't buy any toilet paper though so I didn't totally lose rational judgement.
I am going to do a little research on the drugs that might be useful for COVID 19, and on the vaccines. In the next report here I will try to give you some up to date info. There is some hope there. It is just gong to take some time to accomplish this.
Stay safe out there and practice the hygiene and physical distancing from others recommended by all health scientists. But don't practice social distancing. Call your loved ones. Call those you haven't talked to in years. Send emails, texts, and even snail mail cards to raise other spirits. And we will get through this.
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