Candlewood Valley Pediatrics Blog: Infectious Disease 101
Candlewood Valley Pediatrics Blog: Infectious Disease 101
4/2/2020
We are a few weeks into our quarantine with no immediate end in sight. COVID cases, in our little part of the world, have started to ramp up. At present, I would like to be quite clear about what you should and should not do here in the greater New Milford area. My thoughts are based on what I have observed, or been told by colleagues.
COVID, which is a virus, is very easily transmitted from person to person.
Most of those infected will beat this virus, but some of us will not.
Please protect our neighbors, family, and friends.
- If you have COVID, think you have COVID, think you have been exposed to COVID, or you are being tested for COVID; STAY HOME! Do not leave your house. Don’t go to the grocery store, pharmacy, gas station, doctor’s office or park. YOU ARE CONTAGIOUS. Wearing a mask and gloves will not protect other people from you. YOU WILL EXPOSE SOMEONE AND POSSIBLY KILL THEM. There is absolutely no excuse. If you need groceries or medicine, call the public health department! They will get it for you. This is not a joke. STAY HOME!
- Medicine is part art and part science. So, err on the side of caution if you have any of these: a runny nose, a cough, a low-grade fever, a sore throat, some body aches, or just run down. No one can tell you for sure. Not even a test is 100% accurate. ASSUME you have COVID. Then refer to the first rule of how not to infect others with an infectious disease. STAY HOME! DO NOT GO TO WORK or ANYWHERE ELSE!
- If you are healthy. Stay healthy by staying home, wash your hands often, and avoid being in groups larger than 5. Please get exercise. Just make sure when outside, you avoid people or crowded areas.
- There are plenty of people in the greater New Milford area here to help you. If you need help reach out to a neighbor, the public health department, social services, the mayor’s office, the hospital, or a physician’s office. Please call first, so we can all stay safe and help you. No one should feel alone.
I hope these general principals are clear. Quarantine means “impose isolation on”. Please, isolate yourself for others. Unfortunately, it has not been so clear for some of us. Let’s try and think about our fellow neighbors not just about ourselves.
Let’s stay safe together,
DR F
