We have been following the rapid spread of COVID-19 crisis closely and our worst fears are becoming the new reality. Over that period of time, we have found this resource to be the most essential, and believe that everyone should have a chance to learn from.
With a goal of tracking the pandemic and providing the public with the best guidelines and analysis on stopping its spread, endcoronavirus.org has brought together some of the greatest minds from around the world, and we would like to thank Yaneer Bar-Yam for taking the lead to make this possible. We have received the support of local volunteers in Thailand to help translate this website into Thai so that you too can access this information.
On the site, you’ll find all the basic questions about the virus answered and important guidelines covering essential areas such as Self-isolation guidelines, Business guidelines, Family guidelines, Individual, community, and government guidelines.
The first thing that you should know is what is COVID-19, and why are people so afraid of this outbreak.
What is COVID-19?
COVID-19 is an infectious disease caused by a virus in the coronavirus family. There are many types of coronaviruses, and these commonly cause mild respiratory illnesses. COVID-19 is caused by a new coronavirus, and it was first discovered in Wuhan, China.
Why are people so afraid of this outbreak, isn’t it just like the normal flu?
The Coronavirus (COVID-19) causes about 20% severe cases and 2% deaths. This is about 20 times higher than the flu. A typical incubation period is 3 days but it may extend to 14 days, and reports exist of 24 and 27 days. It is highly contagious with an increase from day to day of 50% in new cases (infection rate R0 of about 3-4) unless extraordinary interventions are made.
Apart from general information, we would love to give several steps that you can take to stop the spread. Our experts have written detailed guides on how to combat COVID-19.
1.) Social Distancing
In areas of heightened risk where the government isn’t taking adequate action, protecting a family, or group is challenging. The spread of fire requires a trail of combustibles. Similarly, the contagion of COVID-19 requires a chain of susceptible individuals. The solution is to:
- Reduce contact between the family and others, and provide for essential needs, and as the risk increases
- Create a safe circle of people that protects those who are in it by shared agreement not to be in unprotected physical contact with others or with surfaces that are touched by others.
The safe circle also curbs contagion because those in the safe circle don’t participate in disease transmission. Members of one safe circle can combine with others to carefully expand the safe circle or create new ones. Below are our guidelines for families.
#Won’t the outbreak happen no matter what we do?
If we reduce contact between people the rate of infection will decrease. By isolating those who are sick or are likely to become sick because of contacts they have had we can reduce the rate of new cases. When there are many cases, this is not enough. It is possible to stop the outbreak by “locking down” communities where there are multiple cases. If everyone stays at home for the incubation period the number of new cases is dramatically smaller. This has been done in China, South Korea, and Italy. China managed to stop and reverse the growth in cases, and they are near eliminating all the cases across China. South Korea and Italy are still working to refine their interventions to achieve the same outcome
2.) Wash your hands and Avoid Touching Face
Begin by cleaning your hands thoroughly and frequently! Hands can pick up the coronavirus through contact with infectious droplets. Scrub hands with soap for at least 20 seconds, then rinse and dry. If soap and water are not available, an alcohol-based sanitizer can also kill viruses that are on your hands. Between hand washings, avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth to keep viruses from entering your body. If someone near you is coughing or sneezing, maintain at least 3 feet of distance to avoid inhaling droplets that may contain a virus. If you are coughing or sneezing, cover your mouth and nose with your bent elbow or a tissue. Most importantly, if you feel unwell, stay home. If you have a fever, cough, and difficulty breathing, call your healthcare provider to learn how to seek medical attention.
3.) Check your health
Check your temperature to find out if there is a fever. Symptoms of COVID-19 commonly include fever, coughing, and tiredness. Some patients also experience aching, nasal congestion, runny nose, sore throat, or diarrhea. Most people recover from this virus without needing special treatment, but some may become seriously ill and develop difficulty breathing. Older people, and those with existing medical problems like heart problems, high blood pressure, or diabetes, are more likely to develop severe symptoms.
find out more about COVID-19 here: https://www.endcoronavirus.org/
Socialgiver has received dozens of fundraising and/or help requests in the past week and in order to support these projects effectively, we are creating a COVID-19 Fund for Thailand. We have received requests from medical professionals, non-profits, and volunteer groups, and we have selected (and will continue to source) high-impact projects that we wish to support here.
The goal of this fund is to support both urgent and well-planned projects that are effectively raising awareness for, and preventing the spread of COVID-19, through to projects that are aimed at mitigating the current and projected impacts.
You can also donate to support our COVID-19 Fund for Thailand here: https://www.socialgiver.com/en/give
What is Socialgiver?
We help projects raise funds, increase the level of transparency and increase their effectiveness through collaboration. Socialgiver helps projects focus on their key mission and change the world, from where change is needed most.
Socialgiver makes it easier for you to create a meaningful impact. You can also track how your favorite projects are doing by visiting our website.
Happy living, Happy giving!
