“If you are told ahead of time to expect difficulties ahead–and what difficulties to expect–it is much easier to cope than if things come at you out of the blue,” I remember a fellow physician sharing with me as our plane was bombarded by lightning in a thunderstorm as we were circling for what seemed like hours above Atlanta.
To this end, I would like to share some of the challenges that we are or will likely be facing in the near future from COVID-19, with suggestions from two pandemic preparedness experts to help you weather the storm.
Are You Prepared?
You’ve tucked in a lifetime supply of hand sanitizer, you are practicing your “social distancing” and standing six feet away from folks at the grocery store, your kids are home from school and you aren’t going to work. You can’t remember the last time you touched your face. Many parts of the US have been told to shelter in place.
So what else should you be thinking about at this point to prepare yourself for the weeks and/or months ahead as this pandemic, caused by a coronavirus known as SARS-CoV-2, bears down on the United States?
The following suggestions are taken from a series of articles by two experts in pandemic preparedness, Peter Sandman and Dr. Jody Lanard, who address everything else we should be doing–and why.
“Healthcare professionals should now be advising people how to prepare – yet this is the most neglected message,” Sandman and Lanard write. “Hardly any officials are telling civil society and the general public how to get ready for this pandemic.” Here are the broad categories that they suggest that you focus on:
- Food. I see a lot of people stockpiling toilet paper and soda. But is that what they will need? Sandman says “What kind of plans do you have for your food? Don’t just assume your grocery store will be open in the normal way. Stockpile nonperishable food (continue to do this gradually–not all at once–so you don’t overwhelm the grocery stores); a two to four week supply of food and living supplies is recommended. It is NOT necessary or helpful to hoard supplies. Everyone needs access to basic supplies. Recommended supplies include: easily prepared canned foods and vegetables, your usual “go to” sick day foods (soup, gatorade, whatever your personal comfort foods are), and cleaning supplies (diluted bleach solutions recommended).”
- Medications. Stockpile a good supply–if possible–of your prescription medications. According to Sandman, “We’ve found it useful to tell friends and family to try to get ahead on their medical prescriptions if they can, in case of very predictable supply chain disruptions, and so they won’t have to go out to the pharmacy at a time when there may be long lines of sick people. This helps them in a practical sense, but it also makes them visualize – often for the first time – how a pandemic may impact them in their everyday lives, even if they don’t actually catch the virus. It simultaneously gives them a small “Oh my God” moment (an emotional rehearsal about the future) – and something to do about it right away to help them get through the adjustment reaction.”
- Planning for sickness. Make plans for caring for sick family members: in particular, they say to think about the following: “What supplies will you need to take care of a loved one? How will you reorganize your life to enable a healthy family member to safely take care of a sick one? It is likely that the rest of you will be exposed, no matter how careful you are. If you had to, could you self-quarantine within your home so you won’t give the virus to others in the family?” Specifically–how will you reorganize your living space to minimize the probability that others in your household will get sick if someone in your household gets COVID-19? Think through now how you will take care of sick family members while trying not to get infected. Who is going to be there to take care of you if you are a single parent and you get sick? Who is going to ensure that grandma has her medication?”
- Plan for your replacement. “Cross-train work personnel so one person’s absence won’t derail the organization’s ability to function,” they suggest. This suggestion can be applied at all levels–for government jobs, postal workers, hospitals and in your own home.
- Personal protective equipment. What about masks and other protective gear, like gloves–to wear or not to wear? The short answer is, if you are sick and coughing or sneezing, you should wear a mask when in public to protect others from catching what you have. I think Sandman’s discussion of when to wear masks is very balanced–it is really an individual choice, but they do a great job of setting forth the pros and cons. “Like washing your hands, wearing a face mask may help a bit. But it has more downsides than washing your hands.”
- Mental preparation. “Try not to switch off. Try not to overreact,” they write According to Sandman, “Preparedness experts know that being prepared isn’t just a matter of what you have done and what you have learned. It’s also about what you have imagined. Military training, for example, devotes a lot of effort to helping recruits imagine what battle will be like. Sports coaches ask their athletes to imagine, again and again, what the crucial moment of the crucial game will be like.”
He continues, “We should be preparing ourselves by thinking about scenarios such as these: What’s it like to be told to stay home with this virus because there’s no room at the hospital? What’s it like to take over a crucial job because the person who knows it best is too sick to work?”
I would add: think about what it may be like to not be allowed to visit a loved one in the hospital–even in the ICU? What is it like to have to postpone a funeral, or have a funeral without any or many family members attending? These scenarios are all playing out across the world as well as here in Massachusetts.
- Organize with your neighborhood, religious, and community groups. Reach out to neighbors and friends and plan together how you will cope if a neighbor is sick and can’t shop for themselves and their partner is in quarantine. Sandman says to focus on the basics: “Does everyone in your community have adequate food, water, medications and shelter? These networks will be invaluable, sustaining the flow of essential goods and services.”
I would add one more suggestion of my own: don’t forget to take care of and preserve your health to the best of your ability. By this I mean–don’t forget to take any medications you are on regularly. Practice good preventive health measures, like doing tick checks after you go for a walk or run or bike ride. Right now, people are outdoors more than ever given the closing of businesses and schools. The ticks in Massachusetts are out early and in force: in late February and early March, I had already heard of two cases of significant tick exposure. In one case, the tick was tested and found to be triply infected with Lyme, Powassan virus, and another infectious disease known as Anaplasma. In the midst of a pandemic, avoiding preventable diseases like these should be a top priority–because it will keep you out of doctors’ offices and the emergency room, which are overflowing right now with COVID patients.
These suggestions won’t save you from being buffeted by the storm–but they may help make you a more skillful pilot as you navigate through it.
Medical Disclaimer: The suggestions given here are not intended as a substitute for the medical advice of your physician. The reader should regularly consult a physician in matters relating to his/her health and particularly with respect to any symptoms that may require diagnosis or medical attention.
Photo credit: photo by Pille Riin Priske, from Unsplash.com
