From health checks to school closings, how Fort Worth can prepare for coronavirus

Sustained transmission of the coronavirus that causes COVID-19 is coming to America.

That was the blunt forecast from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention as clusters of the new coronavirus emerged in countries far from China. It is a question of when, not if, COVID-19 begins spreading in the U.S. and North Texas.

This message was not delivered to stir panic of a doomsday contagion. It was intended to make sure we all start planning today for the possibility of widespread illness, minimizing major disruption to our everyday lives.

What should we do?

First, let’s review what we know about this newly emerging coronavirus. It appears to spread much like influenza, especially through droplets in sneezes or coughs. For many people, the symptoms are mild; a smaller number, especially those with underlying health conditions, are at risk of more severe symptoms, such as pneumonia, and death.

One big difference is that, because COVID-19 is a new virus in humans, few if any people will already have immunity to it, and there is no influenza-like vaccine or anti-viral medication to help relieve symptoms. We also have fewer ways to test people for COVID-19, causing delays in the identification and confirmation of cases.

So, this coronavirus outbreak may be harder to contain than the H1N1 influenza pandemic in 2009. But a major similarity with the influenza pandemic is a multi-layered approach to prevention that depends on basic non-pharmaceutical intervention, such as through handwashing, social distancing, and staying home if you become ill.

How can I prepare?

Here’s what Dallas-Fort Worth area residents can do to prepare now:

• Know your underlying health conditions. Any kind of chronic pulmonary disease, including asthma, elevates the risk of severe symptoms once infected. So could having diabetes or being morbidly obese. If necessary, check with your healthcare provider to recognize your risks.

• Know when to seek medical care. Only people with severe illness should go to the emergency room. Signs of severe illness generally include trouble breathing, high fever, rapid heart rate, and symptoms improving and then rapidly getting worse. If you have any concerns, call your healthcare provider. One of the biggest dangers to the healthcare system is the “worried well” overwhelming hospitals and care clinics.

• Prepare for possible school closures. During the H1N1 influenza pandemic in 2009, Fort Worth ISD closed schools for eight days to prevent transmission. But many parents still had to work, and many children still relied on school meal programs. Plan now for child supervision should schools close again and speak to school leaders about plans to distribute food without large gatherings.

• If you run a business or organization, review your preparedness plans and exercise them. If there are any gaps in your organization’s plan to continue operating with many employees out sick, now is the time to fix them.

• If you are traveling overseas, check the U.S. Department of State Travel Advisory Levels. They state the risk of traveling to each country and reflects terrorism and health risks such as COVID-19.

In the meantime, we all have a responsibility to stay informed. Follow the recommendations issued by the CDC and Tarrant County public health officials. If you are sick, stay home and, if you must leave the house, cover your cough and sneeze with your sleeve or disposable tissue, keep at least a six-foot distance from others, and wash your hands often.

Now is the time to plan, not panic. Our community will be stronger for it.

This story was originally published March 5, 2020 at 9:54 AM.