Prepping for a pandemic 2

[wheresmymojo]

Second thread on prepping for a potential Coronavirus pandemic...following the latest news and information as well as prepping info.

When quoting estimates like mortality rates, replication rates, incubation periods and similar I try to stick to evidence based, scientific studies and will link to sources (unless already linked to them previously).

Generally speaking I use reputable sources of information like well regarded news outlets for other information and will provide links.

Sometimes I may post things outside of this as 'interesting' or such like. I will always caveat these as to be taken with caution.

As much as possible I am attempting not to link to fake news. It's an evolving picture so may not be 100% successful but if something is later shown to be incorrect I will post a correction.

That's all really useful, @BlackeyedSusan thanks. And ultimately a sensible thing to have stashed in a cupboard to grab in case of any unmanned hospital trip, not just in terms of worrying about pandemics.

Keep mine in the car. DD has been to hospital far too often.

I found this on an NHS website:

•	A holdall / large bag with your name on it, kept somewhere obvious, labelled ‘grab bag’, and with a list of anything you may need to add at last minute (*).
•	Up-to-date list of medication/ repeat prescription with allergies.
•	List of main health conditions / episodes, especially if you are away from home.
•	Relevant paperwork eg enduring or lasting power of attorney, living will (advance directive), original DNACPR (Do Not Attempt Resuscitation) order.
•	Glasses / reading glasses, Hearing aid (and batteries).
•	Pen and paper – so you can write down what they have said / who staff are.
•	Comfortable loose nightclothes (front fastening to enable medical examination, named if possible).
•	Spare underwear.
•	Change of clothes (comfy) if you are able to get up – makes you feel better!
•	Cardigan / shoulder wrap if you feel the cold.
•	Basic toiletries, shaving, deodorant, scent, hair care, tooth/denture care.
•	Lypsol as your lips may get dry in hospital atmosphere.
•	Wet wipes / hand gel to clean your hands if you are immobile.
•	Mobile phone and charger, so people can contact you or you can contact them to arrange supplies / feeding the cat etc.
•	Music / earphones / audiobook plus charger to help distract from all the noises.
•	Something to read or do: crossword, ipad/kindle charger (most hospitals have wifi). If you know you are likely to go in at some time, maybe pre-download some films or your favourite episodes.
•	Earplugs / eye-mask to help night-time sleep. It is noisy in hospitals.
•	For people with learning disability / anxiety / dementia etc. ‘This is me’ or ‘Me and My life’ plus some photographs / personal items, comfort objects (i.e. like a blanket if used, a specific item of clothing).
•	Drinks or sweets eg mints or gum to keep mouth moist and fresh.
•	Small amount of cash for newspaper, snacks, TV token, payphone.
•	Plastic bags for dirty laundry.

We live overseas and before we moved I requested copies of our NHS notes. There's a really good summary of key medical events on the first page. I carry those to all appointments. Keep a copy of details for the whole family together to easily answer the questions about what illnesses the DCs siblings have had etc.

Although a little out of date, this link gives useful information, as well as showing how to treat the infection naturally.

https://www.the-cma.org.uk/Articles/Coronavirus-The-Complementary-Medical-Approach-6293/?utmsource=Sign-Up.to&utmmmedium=email&utmcampaign=14306-500414-Campaign%20-%2007/02/2020%20coronavirus-Preview

I'm wondering why two Britain's where refused to board the rescue flight back from wuhan?

They failed temperature checks

Think I’ll reach gratefully for the support of “Big Pharma” if I catch Coronavirus, thanks, @Aurea!

The article you posted is dangerously silly. Just this one (completely unevidenced) sentence gives a flavour:

*Spanish flu deaths in infected and symptomatic people using homeopathy were

They must be devastated and scared.

I've just read on the Sunday times (not sure how credited the paper is) the the man who discovered Ebola virus said we could suffer a major outbreak and that the nhs would be over whelmed.

Thank god for these prepper threads! It seems now the news is talking more openly about what's happening and the severity or it. We even saw clips from Wuhan on itv news yesterday. I think it's good because they are starting to show the public snippets without it causing panic.

*Spanish flu deaths in infected and symptomatic people using homeopathy were

@MyHairIsSoapy That sounds like proportionate response from the NHS. Your relative doesn’t have the symptoms of Coronavirus. Even countries with the largest outbreaks outside China have very small numbers. So unless he informed the NHS that he had had direct contact with someone who was infected, their response sounds entirely reasonable.

Famously, no one in China ever tries complementary medicine.

Homeopathy is only one angle of the article. These figures are not fabricated anyway, if you choose to research further rather than spit off with venom (as per usual Mumsnetters)

Is there any pharma treatment or vaccine available as we speak? No!
There are alternatives to consider while we are waiting.

I would have thought supporting your immune system was key.... but what do I know?

That's a very useful list @NearlySchoolTimeAgain thank you

Aurea I think complementary medicine has its place, as long as it is just that - to be used alongside clinical medical techniques to aid recovery. That website makes some good points about nutrition and trying to keep healthy (I for one am gleeful to finally have a medical excuse to keep piling Garlic and Rosemary on everything), but it does go down a bit of a conspiracy theory route with recognised clinical medicine. It’s like how my mum actually found acupuncture and Tai Chi extremely helpful in aiding recovery... but it would have meant fuck all without the shit tonne of chemotherapy that actually killed the cancer.

I never really think “big pharma” arguments work in the UK. Yes, I will definitely concede that in the US some of the business practices are sketchy as fuck; but here in the UK the NHS are not going to be paying for meds that have no clinical benefit just because of “Big Pharma”. It makes no sense. This is an organisation which has stopped giving out prescriptions for paracetamol, for crying out loud! So Tamiflu must have some clinical benefit otherwise they’re not going to bother using it.

The point about a vaccine not being globally available for 6 months, for example, is conveniently leaving out the fact that in order to control the epidemic you don’t need to vaccinate everyone to start with, just tactically vaccinate buffet zones around infected areas and target key risk populations, then healthcare personnel etc. Then we can get it bundled into the normal yearly flu vaccine next year as normal like they did with Swine Flu etc.

Buffer zones, not buffet zones! We’re not quite ready to go full cannibal yet

www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-7983515/British-father-tests-positive-coronavirus-Majorca-wife-children-cleared.html British father, 46, tests positive for coronavirus in Majorca as his wife and children are cleared - bringing total number of infected UK nationals to eight

@ChipotleBlessing but there are cases in the cruise ship of British people testing positive before becoming symptomatic and the super spreader from Brighton infected friends in France before becoming symptomatic.

This relative spent considerable time there working with locals, came back and developed cold like symptoms and self isolated and phoned up.

The NHS want to wait until they have a link to a previously diagnosed infected person or they develop full on respiratory failure. Surely by that time they’ve infected their household/their work and you’re just working backwards? Surely they are the people you want to test and isolate at home to stop it spreading?

Relative probably just has a common cold or is developing regular flu, but unless you screen everyone then you’re going to miss so many people. Even if they accused them to self isolate for 48hours to see how they progressed would help.

@Aurea the big pharma argument applies to people from the US not the U.K., and were all the crappy anti bad memes come from. In the U.K. you get cancer, your treatment is free. In America you have to sell you house for each round of chemo. In the U.K. doctors don’t make more money from you if you’re sick, it doesn’t work like that.

That article didn’t say anything apart from eat healthily, sleep, and spray some essential oils around the room and wash your hands. Said nothing about treating it.

Right now, washing our hands and not panicking just sounds sensible.

I do think it's a case of "when", not "if" the coronovirus becomes widespread outside of China. However, we already live with several other endemic viruses from that family and I remain hopeful that the death rate will decrease as it circulates.

There is a fourth case in the UK now.

news.sky.com/story/coronavirus-flight-carrying-britons-evacuated-from-wuhan-lands-in-uk-11929798

"Professor Chris Witty said the new case is a known contact of a previously confirmed UK case and the virus was passed on in France."

@covetingthepreciousthings I'm not sure how to link to the board so I'm hoping tagging you in it means you can find it.

So I'm assuming this new case is in Brighton area again?

This study - sorry, not sure if it's peer-reviewed, so feel free to ignore this if I'm posting rubbish! - suggests that smokers might be more susceptible to the virus than non smokers, due to a change in the ACE2 receptors in smokers.

These were all people with lung cancer though, if I read it correctly? It add Leo says that they didn't find any difference in ACE2 receptors between men versus women, or Caucasians vs Asians, although it admits its sample size was small.

https://www.preprints.org/manuscript/202002.0051/v1/download

The French statement yesterday said the mother of the infected family in France was currently in the UK and was being contacted. The new case is probably her.

That's what I thought chipotle