Coronavirus COVID-19 - Global Health Pandemic #65

[Snoods]

Hi Snoods. Yes, trying to work together to reduce and prevent transmission, not exacerbate it.

Absolutely.

 

[margarita25]

I’m trying to think positive!

Totally.

 

[Snoods]

Totally.

Sometimes it helps, sometimes it doesn’t, lol.

 

[margarita25]

Sometimes it helps, sometimes it doesn’t, lol.

It’s like the old saying, “hope for the best, prepare for the worst.”

There’s most certainly an unprecedented and valiant global effort to get one developed.

 

[SouthAussie]

Sometimes it helps, sometimes it doesn’t, lol.

Thinking positively can certainly help the mental health, Snoods. I think that many will be feeling the stress, and that will take its toll.

And putting those positive vibes out there .... the universe may respond with kindness and resolution.

 

[margarita25]

“As COVID-19 roars out of containment in Houston, the city’s paramedics have been among the first to feel the surge. More than 250 of the Houston Fire Department’s staff are sidelined, either hospitalized with COVID-19 or quarantined because of it. Their remaining co-workers are left to deal with a fast-increasing number of calls for medical help and hospital emergency rooms too overwhelmed to immediately accept the patients on their stretchers.

To better understand what’s happening, I talked with Sam Peña, chief of the Houston Fire Department.“

Houston fire chief: 'We're overwhelmed with the number of calls' due to COVID-19

 

[margarita25]

Infectious disease specialist: Florida 'heading a million miles an hour in the wrong direction'

"It's absolutely the saddest thing, the most unnecessary situation that we're finding ourselves in," Marty said. "And it's behaviorally driven."

 

[SouthAussie]

A friend became a great-granddaddy in Houston two days ago. No-one could go near baby and mum while in the hospital - except the dad - current hospital rules. Baby and mum had a quick release from the hospital and are home now.

What a tumultuous time little baby has been born into.

 

[Snoods]

Thinking positively can certainly help the mental health, Snoods. I think that many will be feeling the stress, and that will take its toll.

And putting those positive vibes out there .... the universe may respond with kindness and resolution.

Aww, you’re so kind. (((hugs)))

 

[Snoods]

A friend became a great-granddaddy in Houston two days ago. No-one could go near baby and mum while in the hospital - except the dad - current hospital rules. Baby and mum had a quick release from the hospital and are home now.

What a tumultuous time little baby has been born into.

Congrats to your friend! My niece had her baby yesterday, she will stay in hospital a few days longer because of c-section. Only hubby allowed.

 

[margarita25]

<modsnip>
Stress in America™ 2020: Stress in the Time of COVID-19, Volume Two

From the above link;

“Nearly 2 in 3 adults (66%) say the government response to the COVID-19 pandemic is a significant source of stress.* Of those, 84% say the federal government response is a significant source of stress, followed by state government (72%) and local government (64%). Democrats (73%) are significantly more likely than Republicans (59%) to cite the government response as a source of stress but are only slightly more likely than Independents (68%) to say so. Gen X (ages 42 to 55) (75%) is by far the most likely to say the government response to the COVID-19 pandemic is a significant source of stress, compared to 63% of Gen Z adults (18 to 23), 67% of millennials (24 to 41), 62% of boomers (56 to 74) and 56% of older adults (75+).*”

[...]

“Overall, more than 6 in 10 Americans (63%) agree that the thought of the U.S. reopening causes them stress, but just over 7 in 10 adults (72%) say they are confident they can protect themselves from coronavirus once the U.S. reopens. At the same time, 65% say they wish they had more information about what they should do as their community reopens.*

Parents Stress About the Long-Term Impacts of COVID-19 on Children
Most parents (71%) say they are worried about the impact the coronavirus pandemic has had on their child’s social development, and more than half (55%) report their child has been acting out more since the start of the pandemic.* And while almost 7 in 10 parents (69%) say they are looking forward to their child’s school year being over, 3 in 5 (60%) say they are currently struggling to keep their child occupied, and the same proportion (60%) say they have no idea how they are going to keep their child occupied all summer.*

Despite these challenges, more than 4 in 5 parents (82%) agree that they are grateful for the additional time they’ve had with their child during the coronavirus pandemic.”

 

[ZoriahNZ]

My sister is due to give birth in late September, early October in NYC. Tumultuous times indeed for that little boy when he comes. We just had a virtual gender reveal party today. It was really fun and she purposefully found out the same time we did, even though her hubby obviously had to know because he organized cupcakes to be sent to us. We all cried happily and laughed and drank bubbly and toasted our future nephew over Facebook Messenger.

While we were chatting, she coughed several times and my heart just clenched, you know? But she reassured everyone she's been tested and is negative. But, man, my pregnant sister does not need the added stress right now for the upcoming birth of her first child.

I know tensions are high right now with the state of things nationwide, but a big Happy 4th of July celebration to everyone. Have some virtual cake on me. <3

 

[margarita25]

Houston fire chief: 'We're overwhelmed with the number of calls' due to COVID-19

“And what’s the state of the fire department right now?

Right now we have over 260 firefighters diagnosed or in quarantine for COVID, and there's a lot of uncertainty for them. They're wondering when they're going to see their family, when they're going to get back to normal — and for those that have been exposed, what long-term effects this virus is going to have on them.

Operationally, we're stretched extremely, extremely thin. We came into this fiscal year understaffed because of things that happened with Proposition B and missing our recruitment target. We've had higher-than-normal attrition. Now COVID takes 260 firefighters off the line. It affects our ability to staff our ambulances. We need 845 firefighters to come in every shift to staff every apparatus that we have available.

Are firefighters at a much higher risk of being exposed on the job than other people?

Absolutely. We have taken the posture, from almost from the beginning of this pandemic, that we have a heightened suspicion that every person we meet may have the virus and may be contagious. That has helped us keep down our number of exposures and positive tests for firefighters.

MORE Q&As: Hotez: Houston needs COVID action now. ‘The nightmare scenario is unfolding.’

But the numbers are still getting higher and higher as this fire spreads through our community.”

 

[margarita25]

(Gah I didn’t mean to type “suppress suppression” upstream, I hate it when there’s a glaring typo or error and you can’t edit it)

Short video with a Harvard doctor talking / worth a watch imo:

Epidemiologist Marc Lipsitch on the Risks Americans Face with Reopening | All In | MSNBC

 

[tmar]

"The nine towers that are being locked down will be locked down for at least five days, because that is deemed the appropriate period to test everybody, every single resident other than those who have already tested positive, across those towers and to have those tests processed by the labs.


Victoria records 108 new coronavirus infections, locks down suburbs and public housing

Victoria records 108 new coronavirus infections, locks down suburbs and public housing

47 mins ago

© Provided by ABC News Approximately 3,000 residents live in the nine public housing estates across Flemington and North Melbourne. (ABC News).
...
Residents of nine public housing estates in inner Melbourne will be required to stay in their homes due to an outbreak of coronavirus cases.
Mr Andrews said the nine towers included 1,345 units of housing and were home to about 3,000 residents.

"No-one will be allowed out of those public housing towers," Mr Andrews said.

The estates will be fully locked down for at least five days, effective immediately.

The Premier said it would be a "massive logistical task" to feed all the residents of the towers.

Housing Minister Richard Wynne said the towers were home to "some of the most vulnerable people in our community".

"We will do everything we possibly can to support these people," he said.

"Whether it's in relation to medical support, whether it's in relation to mental health support, drug and alcohol support, obviously the most basic things around food, and in that context we believe that what we are going to be putting in place here is incredibly important because we will always, always, as a government stand by the most vulnerable in our community and certainly many of those people, of course, are those who live in our public housing towers."

 

[margarita25]

Texas Medical Center hospitals move into Phase 2 surge as ICU patients increase
July 1

“Dr. Bela Patel with Memorial Hermann said if people don't take precautions, it could lead to more cases and strain the system.

"The virus has really spread very diffusely in our community, and we want to actually make sure we don't help accelerate the viral spread," said Patel.

She is encouraging people who celebrate the holiday to make some modifications.

"We want people to modify what they normally do, just to make sure that they are social distancing, that they are keeping at least six feet apart from other individuals that are not part of their immediate family members," said Patel.“

—-

Houston hospitals transferring patients amid COVID rise: 'We're running out of ICU beds'
July 2

“McLeod said Ben Taub's ICU was at 73% occupancy, while LBJ's ICU was at 96% occupancy as of Thursday morning. Half of those ICU patients were being treated for coronavirus, he said.

"We're running out of ICU beds," he told ABC News.”

—-

Texas won’t specify where hospital beds are available as coronavirus cases hit record highs

—-

This is how Houston’s COVID-19 positivity rate has increased in the last month

“HOUSTON – The COVID-19 positivity rate in the city of Houston is 24.82% as of June 28, up from 15.35% on June 1.

Just to explain a little. This is a particularly powerful piece of statistical information because positivity rate takes into account the increased testing as it has become more widely available. Positivity rate is the number of reported positive COVID-19 cases divided by the reported total number of tests performed.“

—-

Houston attorney planning to sue to stop Texas mask order

“HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- Governor Greg Abbott's mandatory mask order was not even an hour old, and Houston attorney Jared Woodfill was already drafting the paperwork to sue.

"Every time Governor Abbott issues what we believe are unconstitutional mandates or orders, as he describes them, we believe it's appropriate to challenge them," Woodfill told ABC13.

It will be his seventh lawsuit filed against elected officials over executive orders issued during the pandemic.

The former Harris County Republican Party Chairman believes all of them violate people's rights.”

[...]

“JUDGE HIDALGO'S FULL STATEMENT

"I welcome the ability to make face coverings enforceable in Harris County. We can't lose sight of the fact that, due to the rapid increase in hospitalizations here, already our hospitals have exceeded their base ICU capacity and are having to implement surge protocols. Every tool that our county is allowed to use to contain this crisis saves lives and gets us closer to a day in which we can sustainably coexist with the virus.

We have no time to waste in Harris County -- the virus is not responding to incrementalism, and we are quickly running out of time. I continue to advocate for an enforceable stay home order in Harris County, so that we can bring the curve down and give ourselves a shot at reopening successfully. I'm afraid that waiting will only lead to more lives lost, prolong the economic pain, and bring about further crises."”

Eta note:

“By state law, the County Judge is also the county’s director of emergency management, leading the Harris County Office of Homeland Security & Emergency Management (HCOHSEM). In addition to her formal duties, Judge Hidalgo plays an important advocacy role for the County.“

Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo > Home

 

[BeckyF]

Kimberly Guilfoyle, Donald Trump Jr.'s girlfriend, tests positive for coronavirus

It just keeps getting worse. Donald Trump JR girlfriend tests positive for COVID.

 

[tresir2012]

From the above link;

“Nearly 2 in 3 adults (66%) say the government response to the COVID-19 pandemic is a significant source of stress.* Of those, 84% say the federal government response is a significant source of stress, followed by state government (72%) and local government (64%). Democrats (73%) are significantly more likely than Republicans (59%) to cite the government response as a source of stress but are only slightly more likely than Independents (68%) to say so. Gen X (ages 42 to 55) (75%) is by far the most likely to say the government response to the COVID-19 pandemic is a significant source of stress, compared to 63% of Gen Z adults (18 to 23), 67% of millennials (24 to 41), 62% of boomers (56 to 74) and 56% of older adults (75+).*”

[...]

“Overall, more than 6 in 10 Americans (63%) agree that the thought of the U.S. reopening causes them stress, but just over 7 in 10 adults (72%) say they are confident they can protect themselves from coronavirus once the U.S. reopens. At the same time, 65% say they wish they had more information about what they should do as their community reopens.*

Parents Stress About the Long-Term Impacts of COVID-19 on Children
Most parents (71%) say they are worried about the impact the coronavirus pandemic has had on their child’s social development, and more than half (55%) report their child has been acting out more since the start of the pandemic.* And while almost 7 in 10 parents (69%) say they are looking forward to their child’s school year being over, 3 in 5 (60%) say they are currently struggling to keep their child occupied, and the same proportion (60%) say they have no idea how they are going to keep their child occupied all summer.*

Despite these challenges, more than 4 in 5 parents (82%) agree that they are grateful for the additional time they’ve had with their child during the coronavirus pandemic.”

So basically everyone in America is stressed.

Not surprised with this high infection rate in Southern states. I just wish they could find out what has happened, what has caused it and if A/C or outside gatherings have had an impact.

 

[tresir2012]

Dupe.

 

[tresir2012]

We are not going for herd immunity, sorry I should have been more clear. I was speaking of the US that appears to be going for herd immunity - with its confusing approach.

We have been protecting the indigenous in our country as much as possible. Blocking off traditional lands for them so that infected others cannot go in.

It would be devastating for them if we went for herd immunity. A concept of social distancing does not exist for them, and their genetics apparently makes them much more susceptible to the virus.

Can you explain what you mean by "A concept of social distancing does not exist for them" please?