I was going to write something else, but there’s been so much damn foolishness in the last 12 hours or so about the coronavirus, that you’ve tasked me. You tasked me, and you shall have your op-ed about COVID-19!
That was a little Wrath of Khan to provide some much-needed levity.
Okay, so COVID-19. As I’m sitting here tapping this on Friday morning, there has yet to be a reported case of the virus in Guelph or Wellington County. Could that have changed between now and when you’re reading this? Maybe, that’s what the news section is for.
Something like COVID-19 presents an incredibly unique challenge for media, even local media, to cover. How do you balance giving people the unvarnished information for all its complexity and uncertainty without causing panic? Many newsrooms are trying to find their way to answering that question.
What I do know is that saying all media are inflaming the situation and shouldn’t be trusted helps no one. Some coverage is better than others, but if the news feels overwhelming it’s because COVID-19 is touching all areas of reporting: politics, business, education, sports, entertainment, and, naturally, health.
I would never say trust with absolution, but that’s just as wrong headed as not trusting at all. In medical parlance, there’s nothing wrong with getting a second opinion.
I would also say trust your local news. We live in this community too, and we have a vested interest in its health and well-being. If you see something confusing or unclear, ask the question. Questions are good, and the answers you get will fill the void that might otherwise get filled with conspiracy nonsense.
To wit, no one in Guelph has a vested interest in covering up a case of COVID-19. When the time comes, and it most likely will, Wellington-Dufferin-Guelph Public Health will disclose that information in the most public way possible because to do no less would be a gross dereliction of duty.
If you still have doubts, consider a week ago when it was announced that customers of a Stone Road nail salon had been potentially exposed to HIV, and hepatitis B and C. The smooth and orderly response of public health here should be a cause for confidence in response to any future public health crisis, and there were no accusations of cover-up in the process.
So, let’s not add undue weight to whatever your friend heard wherever they heard because if public health were to start covering up cases of illness in the middle of a pandemic, we would have a much bigger problem than just the current crisis. How could we ever trust public health again, whether that’s the administration of flu shots, or the inspection of our local restaurants?
Look at the response in Waterloo Region. So far, (again, as of this writing) there have been four confirmed cases of COVID-19, and the turnaround in each case, from diagnosis to announcement, has been 24 hours. It would not be unreasonable to think that the timing for our own health unit would be similar.
When COVID-19 officially lands in Guelph, believe me, you will know it, and it will not be though a “Do you know what I heard?” post on Facebook.
What do you do in the meantime… Buy toilet paper? No, leave the toilet paper alone. Unless you need some toilet paper, then of course buy a pack. You don’t need to buy ten.
Same goes for hand sanitizer, which, according to experts that have more knowledge on the matter than any 200 randomly sampled Twitter uses combined, is no substitute for good old-fashioned soap and warm water.
When soap and warm water aren’t an option, that’s when you need sanitizer, but that means you only need a travel size bottle to carry in your pocket or purse. You do not need any amount of hand sanitizer that can be measured in litres, and you certainly don’t need multiple litres of it.
Of course, we all know that some of those people who are buying supplies by the pallet are planning on going into business for themselves. They’ve been quite brazen about admitting it.
In days gone by, in the midst of a crisis, this kind of action was called “profiteering” and it was not only treated like a crime, but the perpetrators were considered worse than an enemy of the state. They were putting their own selfish needs before the collective of society, and in a crisis everybody had to be on the same page.
So let’s start here: for the vast majority of people, COVID-19’s effects are similar to that of the common cold producing sneezing, coughing, respiratory stress and congestion. The most vulnerable to worse symptoms and even death, are older people, and people with weakened immune systems.
What makes COVID-19 problematic is that it’s so easily transmissible. It’s a new disease, so there’s no natural immunity, or herd immunity, and you can carry it without showing symptoms yourself. You might have passed it on before you even realize you have it.
We, the collective ‘We,’ have been through worse, we have survived worse, and we will get through this so long as we keep our heads about us. I promise, you will not wake up tomorrow in an empty hospital and a pad-locked door that says, “Don’t open, dead inside.”
I don’t care how many friends “Whatshisname69” on Twitter says he has at Guelph General Hospital with confirmed cases of novel coronavirus, and neither should you.
