3 Reasons why the Coronavirus is scary and what you can do to protect yourself
In December last year, a mystery virus caused pneumonia-like symptoms in Wuhan, China. Within weeks, the number of infected people exploded exponentially. Within months, tens of thousands were infected in China while hundreds of thousands of new cases erupted around the globe, spreading like wildfire. Currently, the situation seems under control in China with no new cases (excluding Taiwan and Hong Kong), with factories and offices back to normal operations, while the rest of the world struggle to contain the infectious disease. Here are 3 reasons why the coronavirus threatens mankind:
- Most countries were unprepared — psychologically and financially
In February 2020, US President Donald Trump compared the Coronavirus to seasonal flu, claiming that the United States were well-prepared and had “the situation under control”, downplaying the severity of the coronavirus.
Back in late January, the mortality rate of the virus was thought to be between 0.5% — 1.5%, which is very low, resulting in many countries outside of Asia underestimating the seriousness of the virus and not taking enough precautions to stop the spread of the virus. However, current data suggests that the mortality rate of the virus is around 5%, and this contradiction confuses many.
The mortality rate is highly dependent on the number of people being tested, access to quality healthcare, as well as the demographics. A small population being tested is considerably less accurate than a large population being tested. Countries with an ageing population are also likely to suffer from higher death rates as the elderly are more susceptible to death due to the virus. Developed countries like Singapore and South Korea have funds and advanced healthcare facilities to cope with the virus and to minimise the fatalities compared to sub-saharan and African countries.
Financially, most countries, even developed ones, are not well-equipped to deal with the virus, because test-kits have surged in price due to a sky-high demand (test kits cost between USD200 TO USD800, depending on which country you are in) which will pose a huge financial burden (think about millions of suspected cases who require testing). In addition, ventilators which are essential in preserving the lives of the infected, are extremely expensive, costing between $10000 and $20000. Singapore, an affluent and technologically savvy country with a population of around 5.5 million, has only around 80 ventilators, and is highly unlikely to be able to cope with an explosion of new cases, especially if the new cases are more at-risk (elderly, people with immunity-deficiency etc).
2. The coronavirus is extremely infectious
The Basic Reproduction Number (R0) for the coronavirus is estimated to be between 4.5–5.5, compared to the R0 factor of SARS which is around 2.5–3.5. This means that for every person that has the coronavirus, 4.5–5.5 people will get infected, essentially leading to the number of new cases increasing exponentially.
That, combined with a shortage of masks and lack of social distancing in countries such as the US, allows the virus to go on a rampage, multiplying new cases uncontrollably.
3. Long incubation period
Lastly, the coronavirus has an incubation period of around 2 weeks, meaning you may have the virus but may not show any symptom for at least 14 days, making the tracing of the spread of the virus a mammoth task. Furthermore, individuals with strong immune systems such as teenagers, if infected, will likely become asymptomatic carriers of the virus such that they do not show any symptom at all, allowing them to carry on with their daily lives, spreading the virus at an unprecedented rate.
The above factors essentially make it difficult to determine who is infected and who is not, which further signifies the importance of restricting unnecessary travel overseas or even leaving home, as well as the importance of having adequate masks and hand-sanitisers to maintain proper hygiene. Only China has been able to contain the outbreak by imposing a complete lock-down in Wuhan with its draconian measures which democratic and open economies are unable to do. However, due to a lack of transparency and potentially some cover-ups, the responses by the Chinese Communist Party came too late, resulting in several thousands dead in China and also allowing the virus to spread beyond her borders and into the globe.
Now that I have convinced you about the gravity of the situation, below are a few tips to protect yourself during the coronavirus crisis:
- Stay at home
Self-quarantine is the best way to prevent yourself from contracting the virus in the first place (assuming you have not contracted the virus, of course). All non-essential travel and activities outside home should be deferred until the coronavirus crisis is over. In the meantime, we can and should spend our time at home wisely, perhaps some family bonding, netflix, or picking up new skills by taking up free online courses or reading that book that has always kept your interest. However, if you really have to get out of house, maybe to work or to get groceries, you should do the following.
2. Practise social distancing
Since the virus is known to transmit from person-to-person, keeping a 1 metre distance from other people at all times greatly reduce the chances of contracting the virus.
3. Maintain good hygiene practises
If possible, everyone should wear a mask due to the long incubation period of the virus and the uncertainty of who is infected. Hands should be washed with soap regularly to prevent the possible ingestion of the virus when consuming food or when touching your face.
We should stay united as humanity to fight the virus, and not simply blame others for spreading the virus simply because the virus could have originated from any country, and that people do not know that they have the virus until it is too late. I do pray for the full recovery of those infected and hope that we will make it through this crisis.
