Coronavirus COVID-19 - Global Health Pandemic #84

[SouthAussie]

I’m not following how literacy and demographics relates to Covid cases.

For example, we have many instances here in Australia where cultural leaders of other ethnicities have become involved in educating their cultural people about covid. Explaining it in terms that they will understand.

It doesn't mean that these people cannot read and write ... they have just not been understanding what they are required to do to protect against covid.

Looking at the demographic of places like California and NY, I imagine some of the same issues may be happening in those places. IMO


Leaders of the Afghan community in South Australia have worked tirelessly to ensure health messages are shared as widely as possible and to support individuals who were required to undertake quarantine.
Afghan community leaders praised by SA authorities as college cluster contained

 

[Tigerlily75]

Oh, so you really do have to holiday at home for the summer then, but you have the whole of Oz right and Tasmania?

Most Australians do, but not me yet, I live in Melbourne where we are still under restrictions. But hopefully soon, we are now at a rolling 14 day average of 7.5 cases (2 cases today) so the plan is working and hopefully we’ll be able to travel again soon

 

[mickey2942]

I wish that more research was being done on people who are not catching this virus. Especially people who are direct contacts to people who tested positive for COVID-19.

 

[tresir2012]

For example, we have many instances here in Australia where cultural leaders of other ethinicities have become involved in educating their cultural people about covid. Explaining it in terms that they will understand.

It doesn't mean that these people cannot read and write ... they have just not been understanding what they are required to do to protect against covid.

Looking at the demographic of places like California and NY, I imagine some of the same issues may be happening in those places. IMO


Leaders of the Afghan community in South Australia have worked tirelessly to ensure health messages are shared as widely as possible and to support individuals who were required to undertake quarantine.
Afghan community leaders praised by SA authorities as college cluster contained

Do they have internet, phones, social media and television ?

 

[SouthAussie]

Do they have internet, phones, social media and television ?

Yes ... in the example I provided they are students at an international college. But they still were not understanding what was required of them - so we had a minor outbreak. Then their cultural leaders got involved. Now they understand.

 

[Tippy Lynn]

For example, we have many instances here in Australia where cultural leaders of other ethinicities have become involved in educating their cultural people about covid. Explaining it in terms that they will understand.

It doesn't mean that these people cannot read and write ... they have just not been understanding what they are required to do to protect against covid.

Looking at the demographic of places like California and NY, I imagine some of the same issues may be happening in those places. IMO


Leaders of the Afghan community in South Australia have worked tirelessly to ensure health messages are shared as widely as possible and to support individuals who were required to undertake quarantine.
Afghan community leaders praised by SA authorities as college cluster contained

I think in the US Covid has disproportionately spread among certain demographics because many have essential jobs in warehouses and meatpacking plants, where they work closely together and are exposed to the virus and then bring it home to their families who are living in close quarters.
I personally don’t believe literacy plays a significant role in the US.

 

[10ofRods]

I think in the US Covid has disproportionately spread among certain demographics because many have essential jobs in warehouses and meatpacking plants, where they work closely together and are exposed to the virus and then bring it home to their families who are living in close quarters.
I personally don’t believe literacy plays a significant role in the US.

You don't think literacy plays a role in who ends up in meat packing plants?

 

[tresir2012]

I think in the US Covid has disproportionately spread among certain demographics because many have essential jobs in warehouses and meatpacking plants, where they work closely together and are exposed to the virus and then bring it home to their families who are living in close quarters.
I personally don’t believe literacy plays a significant role in the US.

Agree, and if they are migrants, like the fruit and veg pickers, they all work closely together and live in caravans or dorm buildings in close quarters also. UK have had several outbreaks like that.

 

[Tippy Lynn]

You don't think literacy plays a role in who ends up in meat packing plants?

Yes, of course it is.
However, literacy isn’t the cause for coming into contact with Covid, working in a meatpacking plant is.

 

[SouthAussie]

You don't think literacy plays a role in who ends up in meat packing plants?

.... or how they protect themselves and others while doing their jobs.

 

[Tippy Lynn]

.... or how they protect themselves while doing their jobs.

They have interpreters at the plant to educate and to communicate with the workers. Even more so now with the pandemic and the outbreaks seen at the plants.

 

[SouthAussie]

They have interpreters at the plant to educate and to communicate with the workers. Even more so now with the pandemic and the outbreaks seen at the plants.

So now we have gone full circle. IMO

Literacy is and has been an issue in the control of covid.
Not the only issue, but one of the issues.

 

[Tigerlily75]

Gosh, so many stories like this, it’s heartbreaking.

Influencer didn’t believe in COVID, dies of virus

 

[Tippy Lynn]

So now we have gone full circle. IMO

Literacy is and has been an issue in the control of covid.

I guess - if you say so. Lol

 

[10ofRods]

I can't recall who posted above, yet was a great post... grrrr, cannot recall who it was.

They pointed out that US was low on science/critical thinking. I do do do know that many critical thinkers are here at WS though from my experience. (vs. folks who cannot parse MSM information to drill down to the evidence/science MOO)

MOO

I think a couple of us posted about this.

The thing is, there's a lot of misinterpretation of MSM and other publications here on this thread, IMO. Yet, I'd say that everyone here is fairly literate. Scientific literacy is different than public school literacy.

Scientific literacy means being able to understand what the methodology section of a study might say. Is it a good study?

Sadly, many do not understand the difference between various types of immunity, or even between bacteria and viruses. Saying "this is an RNA virus" means nothing to many people - but in some nations, a huge chunk would know what that mean (and therefore, be more likely to read up on RNA based vaccines).

"Monoclonal antibody" keeps getting typed out here, but...do people really know what it means? I've been using the somewhat dated term "humoral immunity" to call out the people who think that IgG antibodies are "immunity" (they are perhaps the easiest and most cost effective to test). IgM antibodies are of real interest in regard to CoVid - but I don't see many people making that distinction or talking/writing about it.

Long-lasting immunity is not measured on those common serology tests. (And I'm pretty sure that the word "serology" is not one that most people use in their daily lives).

Germany has very high scientific literacy (and you can see that in their forums and online comments about CoVid - including on English-speaking forums, as most Germans are scientifically fluent in English). Japan has high scientific literacy, and I daresay that they understand that airborne viral transmission is a thing.

 

[MimosaMornings]

https://www.washingtonpost.com/heal...1c8a18-d053-11ea-9038-af089b63ac21_story.html

“Fear of covid-19 is exposing a lack of health literacy in this country that is not new. The confusion is amplified during a health emergency, however, by half-truths swirling in social media and misinformed statements by people in the public eye.

One in five people struggle with health information, says Michael S. Wolf, director of the Center for Applied Health Research on Aging at the Feinberg School of Medicine at Northwestern University.

“It’s easy to misunderstand [medical information],” says Wolf, who is also founding director of the medical school’s Health Literacy and Learning Program. Some will be too ashamed to say so while others won’t realize they missed a critical detail.

The people most likely to have low health literacy include those dying in greater numbers from covid-19: older adults, racial and ethnic minorities, nonnative English speakers, and people with low income and education levels.”

 

[10ofRods]

Gosh, so many stories like this, it’s heartbreaking.

Influencer didn’t believe in COVID, dies of virus

He's also quite fit, not fat, muscular but not bulky, etc. It's hard to know if he had some other underlying condition but I'm guessing he simply let the symptoms build up until he required supplemental oxygen and that when he left the hospital environment to return to regular breathing, he got into acute trouble.

33 years old. Fitness influencer, Male, not tall, not bulky, not fat. Dead.

 

[Tippy Lynn]

I think a couple of us posted about this.

The thing is, there's a lot of misinterpretation of MSM and other publications here on this thread, IMO. Yet, I'd say that everyone here is fairly literate. Scientific literacy is different than public school literacy.

Scientific literacy means being able to understand what the methodology section of a study might say. Is it a good study?

Sadly, many do not understand the difference between various types of immunity, or even between bacteria and viruses. Saying "this is an RNA virus" means nothing to many people - but in some nations, a huge chunk would know what that mean (and therefore, be more likely to read up on RNA based vaccines).

"Monoclonal antibody" keeps getting typed out here, but...do people really know what it means? I've been using the somewhat dated term "humoral immunity" to call out the people who think that IgG antibodies are "immunity" (they are perhaps the easiest and most cost effective to test). IgM antibodies are of real interest in regard to CoVid - but I don't see many people making that distinction or talking/writing about it.

Long-lasting immunity is not measured on those common serology tests. (And I'm pretty sure that the word "serology" is not one that most people use in their daily lives).

Germany has very high scientific literacy (and you can see that in their forums and online comments about CoVid - including on English-speaking forums, as most Germans are scientifically fluent in English). Japan has high scientific literacy, and I daresay that they understand that airborne viral transmission is a thing.

Regarding the bolded by me part of your post.......

IMO that’s exactly why it’s been so hard to control the spread of Covid.

ETA: Between the media and politics the US doesn’t stand a chance at getting ahead of the Covid spread.

 

[Deleted member 39678]

How hard is to explain to someone that it's important to help prevent the spread of Covid-19 we need to wear a mask, stay 6 feet away from others, wash your hands and avoid touching you face?

The idea that literacy is involved in understanding something so simple escapes me. JMO

 

[Tippy Lynn]

How hard is to explain to someone that it's important to help prevent the spread of Covid-19 we need to wear a mask, stay 6 feet away from others, wash your hands and avoid touching you face?

The idea that literacy is involved in understanding something so simple escapes me. JMO

I’m with you - completely.