Post # 190 -- Updates COVID 19

Dear Family and Friends

This morning the school here scheduled a meeting on Monday Morning, by afternoon that meeting had then become a Zoom meeting over the cyberspace!!! Meetings have been moved from meeting rooms to the shop where there is more room for social distances☹ 6 feet apart, right?

I am grateful to the Lord for all of the various ways that we are able to communicate with one another😊 it would be utter chaos if we were quarantined as in the old days and unable to communicate with loved ones to let them know not only where we are but how we are at any given moment in time😊 aren’t you just as grateful?

If you think about it the Lord has been preparing us for such a time as this😊 we have the tools that we need for such a time as this. We may be in a terrible time what with the world in a Pandemic because of the COVID 19 virus☹ but we have what we need to cope with all that this entails😊

We must remember to trust in the Lord and not give way to our fear’s bout this or any given situation. We must remember that the Lord is in charge of everything😊

for us to give into our fears means that we are not trusting the Lord that He can protect us if it is His will. I believe this and I believe that if we put our trust in the Lord, we will come out ok😊

This does not mean that we will not face trials, or even death. What I have found that it does mean is that through the Atonement of Jesus Christ we can feel genuine peace throughout any of our many troubled times in this, our tumultuous world. This also means that we must do our part to prepare ourselves. We must do our part to protect our elves and those we love to the best of our individual abilities😊

And when our abilities aren’t enough, we must rely on the Lord and His ability to help us. We must ask God in the name of His Son, Jesus Christ to give us the strength that we need😊 to make it through this field of difficulties as well😊 so much has changed in this past week. 

I know here in our state the count of COVID 19 cases went up 10 over night☹I am trying very hard not to repeat myself with the information that I am sharing with each update. 
this is the updated graph that I made on the 18 only 2 days ago. Look how much each state has gone up. The first number was from the 18th. the second or higher number was from the 20th☹

Cases in U.S.

Updated March 20, 2020

Alabama 39 – up to 78	Hawaii 13 – up to 20	Massachusetts 218 – up to 328	New Mexico 23 – up to 35	South Dakota 11 – up to 14
Alaska 1-5 up to 9	Idaho 1-5 up to 23	Michigan 65—up to 334	New York 2601—up to 6834	Tennessee 73 – up to 154
Arizona 18 – up to 68	Illinois 160 – up to 422	Minnesota 77— up to  115	North Carolina 63  --up to 137	Texas 64 – up to 143
Arkansas 24 – up to 64	Indiana 30 – up to 56	Mississippi 34— up to 80	North Dakota 1-5 up to 19	Utah 41 – up  to 68
California 596 – up to 982	Iowa 29 – up to 44	Missouri 13 – up to 28	Ohio 67 – up to 119	Vermont 10—up to 16
Colorado 188 – up  to 277	Kansas 16 – up  to 35	Montana 11—up to 15	Oklahoma 19 – up to 49	Virginia 65 – up to 114
Connecticut 68 – up  to 159	Kentucky 26 – up to 43	Nebraska 21 – up to 27	Oregon 65 – up to 88	Washington 930 –up to 1376
Delaware 15- up 30	Louisiana 189 – up 392	Nevada 55 – 95	Pennsylvania 96 – up 185	West Virginia 1-5 same
Florida 195 – up 393	Maine 32 – up 52	New Hampshire 26 – 44	Rhode Island 23 – up 44	Wisconsin 88 – up to 155
Georgia 178 – up 397	Maryland 85 -- 149	New Jersey 267 – 742	South Carolina 47 – up 81	Wyoming 11—up to 18

I know that the numbers are becoming more widespread. some states seem to be adding quickly and others seem to be adding slower. Please forgive me if I am getting repetitive☹ remember that I am trying not to be too repetitive😊 Here is information about how to get your home ready, before, during and after the COVID 19 virus.

Get Your Home Ready

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This interim guidance is based on what is currently known about the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19). The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) will update this interim guidance as needed and as additional information becomes available.

This interim guidance is to help household members plan for community transmission of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in the United States. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) encourages household members to prepare for the possibility of a COVID-19 outbreak in their community.

COVID-19 is caused by a new virus. There is much to learn about its transmissibility, severity, and other features of the disease. We want to help everyone prepare to respond to this public health threat.

In this guidance

·         Before a COVID-19 outbreak occurs: Plan

·         During a COVID-19 outbreak: Act

·         After a COVID-19 outbreak has ended: Follow Up

·         Readiness Resources

Before a COVID-19 outbreak occurs in your community: Plan

A COVID-19 outbreak could last for a long time in your community. 

Depending on the severity of the outbreak, public health officials may recommend community actions designed to help keep people healthy, reduce exposures to COVID-19, and slow the spread of the disease.

 Local public health officials may make recommendations appropriate to your local situation. Creating a household plan can help protect your health and the health of those you care about in the event of an outbreak of COVID-19 in your community. 

You should base the details of your household plan on the needs and daily routine of your household members.

Create a household plan of action

Talk with the people who need to be included in your plan. Meet with household members, other relatives, and friends to discuss what to do if a COVID-19 outbreak occurs in your community and what the needs of each person will be.

Plan ways to care for those who might be at greater risk for serious complications. There is limited information about who may be at risk for severe complications from COVID-19 illness. 

From the data that are available for COVID-19 patients, and from data for related coronaviruses such as SARS-CoV and MERS-CoV, it is possible that older adults and persons who have underlying chronic medical conditions may be at risk for more serious complications. Early data suggest older people are more likely to have serious COVID-19 illness. 

If you or your household members are at increased risk for COVID-19 complications, please consult with your health care provider for more information about monitoring your health for symptoms suggestive of COVID-19. CDC will recommend actions to help keep people at high risk for complications healthy if a COVID-19 outbreak occurs in your community.

Get to know your neighbors. 

Talk with your neighbors about emergency planning. If your neighborhood has a website or social media page, consider joining it to maintain access to neighbors, information, and resources.

Identify aid organizations in your community. Create a list of local organizations that you and your household can contact in the event you need access to information, health care services, support, and resources. 
Consider including organizations that provide mental health or counseling services, food, and other supplies.

Create an emergency contact list. Ensure your household has a current list of emergency contacts for family, friends, neighbors, carpool drivers, health care providers, teachers, employers, the local public health department, and other community resources.

Practice good personal health habits and plan for home-based actions

Practice everyday preventive actions now. Remind everyone in your household of the importance of practicing everyday preventive actions that can help prevent the spread of respiratory illnesses:

·         Avoid close contact with people who are sick.

·         Stay home when you are sick, except to get medical care.

·         Cover your coughs and sneezes with a tissue.

·         Clean frequently touched surfaces and objects daily (e.g., tables, countertops, light switches, doorknobs, and cabinet handles) using a regular household detergent and water.

o    If surfaces are dirty, they should be cleaned using a detergent and water prior to disinfection. 

For disinfection, a list of products with Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)-approved emerging viral pathogens claims, maintained by the American Chemistry Council Center for Biocide Chemistries (CBC), is available at Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) Fighting Productspdf iconexternal icon. Always follow the manufacturer’s instructions for all cleaning and disinfection products.

·         Wash your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds, especially after going to the bathroom; before eating; and after blowing your nose, coughing, or sneezing. 

If soap and water are not readily available, use a hand sanitizer that contains at least 60% alcohol. Always wash your hands with soap and water if your hands are visibly dirty.

Choose a room in your home that can be used to separate sick household members from those who are healthy. Identify a separate bathroom for the sick person to use, if possible. Plan to clean these rooms, as needed, when someone is sick. Learn how to care for someone with COVID-19 at home.

Be prepared if your child’s school or childcare facility is temporarily dismissed

Learn about the emergency operations plan at your child’s school or childcare facility. During a COVID-19 outbreak in your community, local public health officials may recommend temporary school dismissals to help slow the spread of illness. School authorities also may decide to dismiss a school if too many students or staff are absent. 

Understand the plan for continuing education and social services (such as student meal programs) during school dismissals. 

If your child attends a college or university, encourage them to learn about the school’s plan for a COVID-19 outbreak.

Plan for potential changes at your workplace

Learn about your employer’s emergency operations plan. Discuss sick-leave policies and telework options for workers who are sick or who need to stay home to care for sick household members. 

Learn how businesses and employers can plan for and respond to COVID-19.

During a COVID-19 outbreak in your community: Act

During an outbreak in your community, protect yourself and others by:

·         Staying home from work, school, and all activities when you are sick with COVID-19 symptoms, which may include fever, cough, and difficulty breathing.

·         Keeping away from others who are sick.

·         Limiting close contact with others as much as possible (about 6 feet).

Put your household plan into action

Stay informed about the local COVID-19 situation. Get up-to-date information about local COVID-19 activity from public health officialsexternal icon. Be aware of temporary school dismissals in your area, as this may affect your household’s daily routine.

Stay home if you are sick. Stay home if you have COVID-19 symptoms. If a member of your household is sick, stay home from school and work to avoid spreading COVID-19 to others.

·         If your children are in the care of others, urge caregivers to watch for COVID-19 symptoms.

Continue practicing everyday preventive actions. Cover coughs and sneezes with a tissue and wash your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds. 

If soap and water are not available, use a hand sanitizer that contains 60% alcohol. 
Clean frequently touched surfaces and objects daily using a regular household detergent and water.

Use the separate room and bathroom you prepared for sick household members (if possible). Learn how to care for someone with COVID-19 at home. 

Avoid sharing personal items like food and drinks. Provide your sick household member with clean disposable facemasks to wear at home, if available, to help prevent spreading COVID-19 to others.

 Clean the sick room and bathroom, as needed, to avoid unnecessary contact with the sick person.

·         If surfaces are dirty, they should be cleaned using a detergent and water prior to disinfection. For disinfection, a list of products with EPA-approved emerging viral pathogens claims, maintained by the CBC, is available at Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) Fighting Productspdf iconexternal icon. 

   Always follow the manufacturer’s instructions for all cleaning and disinfection products.

Stay in touch with others by phone or email. If you live alone and become sick during a COVID-19 outbreak, you may need help. If you have a chronic medical condition and live alone, ask family, friends, and health care providers to check on you during an outbreak. Stay in touch with family and friends with chronic medical conditions.

Take care of the emotional health of your household members. Outbreaks can be stressful for adults and children. Children respond differently to stressful situations than adults. Talk with your children about the outbreak, try to stay calm, and reassure them that they are safe.

Inform your workplace if you need to change your regular work schedule

Notify your workplace as soon as possible if your schedule changes. Ask to work from home or take leave if you or someone in your household gets sick with COVID-19 symptoms, or if your child’s school is dismissed temporarily.

Take the following steps to help protect your children during an outbreak

If your child/children become sick with COVID-19, notify their childcare facility or school. Talk with teachers about classroom assignments and activities they can do from home to keep up with their schoolwork.

Keep track of school dismissals in your community. Read or watch local media sources that report school dismissals. If schools are dismissed temporarily, use alternative childcare arrangements, if needed.

Discourage children and teens from gathering in other public places while school is dismissed to help slow the spread of COVID-19 in the community.

After a COVID-19 outbreak has ended in your community: Follow Up

Remember, a COVID-19 outbreak could last a long time. The impact on individuals, households, and communities might be great. When public health officials determine the outbreak has ended in your community, take time to improve your household’s plan. 

As public health officials continue to plan for COVID-19 and other disease outbreaks, you and your household also have an important role to play in ongoing planning efforts.

Evaluate the effectiveness of your household’s plan of action

Discuss and note lessons learned. Were your COVID-19 preparedness actions effective at home, school, and work? Talk about problems found in your plan and effective solutions. Identify additional resources needed for you and your household.

Participate in community discussions about emergency planning. Let others know about what readiness actions worked for you and your household. Maintain communication lines with your community (e.g., social media and email lists). Promote the importance of practicing good personal health habits.

Continue to practice everyday preventive actions. Stay home when you are sick; cover your coughs and sneezes with a tissue; wash your hands often with soap and water; and clean frequently touched surfaces and objects daily.

Take care of the emotional health of your household members. Make time to unwind and remind yourself that strong feelings will fade. Take breaks from watching, reading, or listening to news stories about COVID-19. Connect with family and friends. Share your concerns and how you are feeling with others.

Help your child/children cope after the outbreak. 

Provide children with opportunities to talk about what they went through or what they think about it. Encourage them to share concerns and ask questions. 

Because parents, teachers, and other adults see children in different situations, it is important for them to work together to share information about how each child is coping after the outbreak.

COVID-19 Readiness Resources

·         Visit cdc.gov/COVID19 for the latest information and resources

·         COVID 2019 Situation Summary

·         Prevention and Treatment

·         What to Do If You Are Sick

·         Pregnant Women and COVID FAQs

·         Stigma Related to COVID-19

·         Handwashing: A Family Activity

·         Handwashing: Clean Hands Save Lives

CDC Interim Guidance for Specific Audiences

·         Interim Guidance for Administrators of US Childcare Programs and K-12 Schools to Plan, Prepare, and Respond to Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19)

·         Interim Guidance for Businesses and Employers to Plan and Respond to Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19)

CDC Communication Resources

·         Communication Resources

·         Print Resources

·         Buttons and Badges

https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/prepare/get-your-household-ready-for-COVID-19.html

Talking with children about Coronavirus Disease 2019: Messages for parents, school staff, and others working with children

As public conversations around coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) increase, children may worry about themselves, their family, and friends getting ill with COVID-19. 

Parents, family members, school staff, and other trusted adults can play an important role in helping children make sense of what they hear in a way that is honest, accurate, and minimizes anxiety or fear. 

CDC has created guidance to help adults have conversations with children about COVID-19 and ways they can avoid getting and spreading the disease.

General principles for talking to children

Remain calm and reassuring.

·         Remember that children will react to both what you say and how you say it. They will pick up cues from the conversations you have with them and with others.

Make yourself available to listen and to talk.

·         Make time to talk. Be sure children know they can come to you when they have questions.

Avoid language that might blame others and lead to stigma.

·         Remember that viruses can make anyone sick, regardless of a person’s race or ethnicity. Avoid making assumptions about who might have COVID-19.

Pay attention to what children see or hear on television, radio, or online.

·         Consider reducing the amount of screen time focused on COVID-19. Too much information on one topic can lead to anxiety.

Provide information that is honest and accurate.

·         Give children information that is truthful and appropriate for the age and developmental level of the child.

·         Talk to children about how some stories on COVID-19 on the Internet and social media may be based on rumors and inaccurate information.

Teach children everyday actions to reduce the spread of germs.

·         Remind children to stay away from people who are coughing or sneezing or sick.

·         Remind them to cough or sneeze into a tissue or their elbow, then throw the tissue into the trash.

·         Discuss any new actions that may be taken at school to help protect children and school staff.
(e.g., increased handwashing, cancellation of events or activities)

·         Get children into a handwashing habit.

o    Teach them to wash their hands with soap and water for at least 20 seconds, especially after blowing their nose, coughing, or sneezing; going to the bathroom; and before eating or preparing food.

o    If soap and water are not available, teach them to use hand sanitizer. Hand sanitizer should contain at least 60% alcohol. Supervise young children when they use hand sanitizer to prevent swallowing alcohol, especially in schools and childcare facilities.

Facts about COVID-19 for discussions with children

Try to keep information simple and remind them that health and school officials are working hard to keep everyone safe and healthy.

What is COVID-19?

·         COVID-19 is the short name for “coronavirus disease 2019.” It is a new virus. Doctors and scientists are still learning about it.

·         Recently, this virus has made a lot of people sick. Scientists and doctors think that most people will be ok, especially kids, but some people might get pretty sick.

·         Doctors and health experts are working hard to help people stay healthy.

What can I do so that I don’t get COVID-19?

·         You can practice healthy habits at home, school, and play to help protect against the spread of COVID-19:

o    Cough or sneeze into a tissue or your elbow. If you sneeze or cough into a tissue, throw it in the trash right away.

o    Keep your hands out of your mouth, nose, and eyes. This will help keep germs out of your body.

o    Wash your hands with soap and water for at least 20 seconds. Follow these five steps—wet, lather (make bubbles), scrub (rub together), rinse and dry. You can sing the “Happy Birthday” song twice.

o    If you don’t have soap and water, have an adult help you use a special hand cleaner.

o    Keep things clean. 
Older children can help adults at home and school clean the things we touch the most, like desks, doorknobs, light switches, and remote controls. 

(Note for adults: you can find more information about cleaning and disinfecting on CDC’s website.)

o    If you feel sick, stay home. Just like you don’t want to get other people’s germs in your body, other people don’t want to get your germs either.

What happens if you get sick with COVID-19?

·         COVID-19 can look different in different people. For many people, being sick with COVID-19 would be a little bit like having the flu. People can get a fever, cough, or have a hard time taking deep breaths. Most people who have gotten COVID-19 have not gotten very sick. Only a small group of people who get it have had more serious problems. From what doctors have seen so far, most children don’t seem to get very sick. While a lot of adults get sick, most adults get better.

·         If you do get sick, it doesn’t mean you have COVID-19. 

People can get sick from all kinds of germs. What’s important to remember is that if you do get sick, the adults at home and school will help get you any help that you need.

·         If you suspect your child may have COVID-19, call the healthcare facility to let them know before you bring your child in to see them.

Resources

·         CDC’s COVID-19 website

·         Talking to Children about COVID-19pdf iconexternal icon, developed by the National Association of School Nurses and the National Association of School Psychologists. Also available in Spanishpdf iconexternal icon.

·         Helping Children Cope with Emergencies

I hope this information has been helpful to each one of you in some small way😊I pray that you and your family members and friends are healthy and well. My prayers go out to all of you who are sick or who have either loved ones that are sick or have lost a loved one through this new virus.

Feel free to check out any of the resources or the sites that I have shared with you if you need more information before my next post😊 please do continue with your prayers at least morning and evening😊 continue to study your scriptures, especially the Book of Mormon.

Please continue to study the Book of Mormon with me and all of our cyber study buddies out there in cyberspace😊 Please remember who you are😊 you are each one a child of God!!!  Until my next post, do what you need to do to prevent you and your family members from getting sick with this new virus – COVID 19 and be sure to make it a safe week😊