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COVID19 Online Resource Center: TAKE THIS SERIOUSLY



People with Empathy is planning a series of educational material for both medical professionals as well as patients and caregivers throughout the global COVID-19 pandemic. The resource center can be found here. Sign up to help here. Follow us on Facebook and LinkedIn for ongoing updates as well.

WHY YOU SHOULD TAKE THIS SERIOUSLY

Regardless of what anyone tells you,
  • COVID-19 is NOT "just like the flu," and
  • Yes, young people can get really, really sick from COVID-19.
It has seeped into the public consciousness that the flu kills thousands of people every year, and so the coronavirus we are dealing with now is nothing more serious. Here are the differences:
  1. The fatality rate from COVID-19 is much higher. The seasonal flu kills 0.1% of those who become infected. Compare that with the estimated fatality rate of about 2% of those infected with the COVID-19 virus who will die. That is 20x as much.
  2. The COVID-19 coronavirus spreads much faster. Every person infected, without strong measures to prevent transmission, infects 2.2 people on average. On average, someone with a seasonal flu passes it onto 1.3 people.

    Combine 1 and 2 above, and this means if we don't check it, the COVID-19 will spread and kill people at 33 times the rate of the seasonal flu. This could seriously overwhelm our health care systems, and if that happens, it will not only mean more sickness and death from COVID-19 but from other illnesses as well as our health care system starts having to triage and turn away people suffering from all conditions.
  3. There is a vaccine for the flu! It isn't perfect, but the seasonal flu vaccine is for the most part effective. No vaccine exists for COVID-19 yet, and since this virus is new, there is no pre-developed immunity for it in the human population.
Being young and healthy does not make you invincible. A study released by the Centers for Disease Control found that a surprisingly greater number of young people are getting sick form the coronavirus than previously thought.
  1. 20% of those hospitalized from COVID-19 are between 20 and 44 years of age, by comparison, 35% of those hospitalized are over 65.
  2. Young people are more likely to have undiagnosed underlying conditions that make them susceptible to COVID-19,
  3. Lastly, even if you don't get sick, you could still be a carrier and end up passing it onto someone you love.
So, regardless of how old you are, how great you feel, or how confident you are that you can personally beat anything that comes your way, take this seriously.

Learn more and stay up to date at our COVID19 Resource Center.
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