From Dr. Dave Rearick, one of our LBRCA members: The following is from a colleague of mine, Steven Marlow, MD. Dr. Marlow is a prominent Atlanta infectious disease physician, an expert in this area and his words of advice should be taken seriously by all of us.
“Dear Family and Friends:
New information on transmission and the impending uptick in cases in our local area prompt this update. We are learning more about asymptomatic transmission – up to 25% of people without symptoms may be contagious. People are contagious from 48 hrs prior to and as long as 3 weeks after they are infected. A recent outbreak in a WA state choir and the overall pattern of US cases, along with the previously discussed lab data strongly suggest the virus is transmissible in small invisible clouds that hang in the air indoors for several hours. The doubling times suggest the outbreak is hitting Atlanta and environs, followed by DC in a week or two. (We can expect our county, Fannin, to be several weeks behind Atlanta-my addition).
What should we doing as doubling times increase in our area?
• Do “shelter at home” going outside only for essentials such as food shopping, pharmacy and urgent medical appointments.
• Do wear a mask when you enter a closed public space like a supermarket. An N95 is the only type of mask proven effective against walking through “invisible clouds of virus” in indoor spaces. If you don’t have one a surgical mask, cloth mask, scarf, or bandana are better than nothing. Walking outdoors without a mask, if you can insure 6ft distancing, is OK. (Air circulation disburses the clouds quickly)
In addition if you are a high risk individual:
• Do wipe down groceries and packages as previously described. Probably an overreaction, but better safe than sorry.
• Do consider removing your clothing, placing into a washing machine without touching any surfaces, sanitizing your hands and showering if you think you came in contact with someone who may be contagious. This is what many front-line health care workers do when they get home. Remember your risk will be much lower than theirs so reserve this for an unexpected close contact with someone coughing or sneezing.
A good framework to view this outbreak boils down to three missions:
Slow It — Stop It — Treat It
1. Slow it, or mitigation, consists of social distancing and hand cleansing. It buys time to prevent medical system overload and deaths, like in Italy, until stop it measures are deployed, like S. Korea.
2. Stop it consists of early detection of cases by testing and case contact tracking together with strict isolation.
3. Treat it consists of safe and effective drug treatments followed by vaccines to deal with the next waves, which will be much less severe.
We can’t get back to work safely until stop it measures are fully deployed and new cases are close to zero, in the absence of effective treatments.”
Steven I. Marlowe MD, FACP, FIDSA
(Reposted with permission)
News regarding the lake:
The Department of Natural Resources will enforce the executive order limiting large gatherings with officials patrolling bodies of water and campgrounds. They are monitoring coves where people tend to congregate and, if necessary, using bullhorns to tell people to comply with the order. Officials will approach people in violation of the order and demand compliance for the well-being of our citizens and state. Local officials are also working hard to ensure compliance with local directives, which vary by city and county across our state.