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City of Worcester Ready to Respond to Potential Spread of Coronavirus

By Tom Marino | February 28, 2020
Last Updated: February 2, 2021

WORCESTER – In its newest situation summary of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) on Feb 25, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) noted that imported cases and person-to-person spread of cases have been detected in the United States.

CDC assessed the risk to the general public as low. Those with the risk of increased exposure include healthcare workers caring for patients with the disease and others who come in close contact with those who have coronavirus.

They also noted “…that current global circumstances suggest it is likely that this virus will cause a pandemic. In that case, the risk assessment would be different.”



City of Worcester’s Medical Director on the Coronavirus

Earlier this week, ThisWeekInWorcester.com spoke with Dr. Michael Hirsh, Medical Director for the City of Worcester, after the CDC’s announcement.

Dr. Hirsh stressed that only one case has been detected in Massachusetts and the small number of cases, without any deaths, show public health officials in the United States are doing a good job.

Hirsh also said that he believes the virus has shown that it will not be containable. He expects the virus will be present “…not just this year, but [for] a lot of years.”

The Division of Emergency Preparedness within the Massachusetts Department of Public Health is coordinating closely “…with the hospitals, nursing homes and community health centers to, monitor, with our public health nurses and potentially spot cases to get them isolated quickly.”

The City’s emergency preparedness team has meetings with both the public school system and local area colleges and universities scheduled for this week. They will discuss procedures when schools detect someone who has the risk factors combined with flu-like symptoms.

 

How To Protect Yourself

Dr. Hirsh said that people should be vigilant in protecting themselves.

“We know that the coronavirus can live for nine days on surfaces on the homes of the folks affected,” Dr. Hirsh said. He stressed using disinfectant wipes on home surfaces.

The CDC also recommends:

  • Avoiding close contact with those who are sick
  • Staying home when you are sick
  • Covering coughing or sneezing with a tissue and then throwing it in the trash
  • Washing your hands frequently with soap and water for 20 seconds, especially after going to the bathroom, before eating and after blowing your nose, coughing or sneezing

 

This is Not Ebola

The worldwide mortality rate for coronavirus, according to World Health Organization [WHO] statistics, is 3.3% as of Wednesday, Feb 26.

Dr. Hirsh stressed that the coronavirus isn’t ebola, which has a 90% mortality rate.

While 3.3% is concerning, Dr. Hirsh told us that with most cases being in China “…the CDC feels that clustering, close proximity issues, and poor access to hospital care has really led to [the mortality rate].”

Dr. Hirsh also said that the virus is affecting people in different ways. He estimated that “…50% of the people so far who have contracted it, with serum testing to confirm that, never knew they had it.”

Another 25% get very mild symptoms. “A little sore throat, low grade fever. Not really toxic at all,” Dr. Hirsh said.

The last 25% are patients who become seriously ill. These cases have been mostly adults, the elderly and those with compromised immune systems. Dr. Hirsh said the coronavirus doesn’t seem to be a disease that has infected children very much.

 

Preparation for Outbreak

The City’s emergency distribution procedures are rehearsed yearly, starting more than a decade ago.

In the event of an outbreak, Dr. Hirsh believes the city is well prepared. It has a supply of special protective equipment within its emergency distribution program. The city also has a half dozen sites around the city the program could take over for emergency supplies and medication distribution.

A special fluid that can rehydrate a patient without starting an IV is also available.

The challenge would be to keep people who are exposed in one place. Hospitalization can often lead to increased exposure, especially among vulnerable patients. Often, patients also don’t do as well inside a hospital setting.

 

Global Statistics

As of Thursday, Feb. 27, there are 60 known cases in the United States with all but one of them who traveled to Asia or were in close contact with those who went there.

Patients quarantined on the Diamond Princess cruise ship off Japan accounted for 42 of those cases.

As of its update on Feb. 26,  the WHO reports 81,109 confirmed cases of coronavirus globally. Only about 4% of cases detected are outside of China. Of the 2,718 deaths associated with coronavirus, just 44, or 1.6%, are outside China.

There have been no deaths in the United States.

 

Image Credit: Pharexia / CC BY-SA

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