I posted the above message on Facebook on the same day (February 29 Saturday) as the viral outbreak at the Life Care nursing care center in Kirkland, Washington.
The state officials said that the first death in the U.S. from the novel coronavirus, the first health care worker to be infected with the disease, and most worrying, the first known outbreak in the above long-term care facility.
In the Life Care nursing care center, approximately 27 of the 108 residents and 25 of the 180 staff have some symptoms, health officials said during a teleconference with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Authorities report that some of them have pneumonia. Refer to: https://www.statnews.com/2020/02/29/new-covid-19-death-raises-concerns-about-virus-spread-in-nursing-homes/
During that time, I read a report from Taiwan about a Taiwanese-American caregiver working at the Life Care nursing center who wore a facial mask to her office right after the outbreak. When her American colleague came into their work setting, shockingly asked her, " Are you O.K.?" that put her in an ambivalent situation. This Taiwanese-American employee was aware of the detriments of SARS, not to mention the unknown novel coronavirus. Then another co-worker, and then her supervisor all said the same thing. Even the supervisor suggested her if not feeling well, better go home for a rest.
For her, it was natural to wear a mask during the viral crisis, but unfortunately, it was not supposed to do during that time, in the US... Nevertheless, it is never too late to do it now. Surely, you need to know the essential role and functions of the masks during the novel coronavirus crisis; and even more importantly, is to know how challenging it is to get one... (Note, during mid-March to the end of April, some basic protective gears for the general population are more available than before.)
Before the outbreak of the Life Center, Washington on February 28, I shared a post on Facebook how shocked I was on February 5, in reading the rendering of the VERY FIRST CASE happening in Wisconsin (the 12th of the US). I was skeptical of the needed protocols (the health caregivers' PPE issues and viral treatment procedures) in screening, testing, treating, self-quarantine, and tracking the contacted people and places that were done adequately. That first case report frightened me tremendously. At that time, I thought of patient confidentiality (such HIPAA) and civil liberties protected in the US., which I should not have been too worried or curious for further understanding or probing.
In Taiwan, each discovered or identified case has to be documented for the potential medical interventions and data collection (aided by the digital devices without violating the confidentiality). Tracking down the contacted people, places visited (for disinfection) by the infected, and various follow-ups according to the category of severity based on the anti-viral protocols are stringently managed. Here is a helpful article published by the Atlantic Council: https://atlanticcouncil.org/blogs/new-atlanticist/lessons-from-taiwans-experience-with-covid-19/
EACH incrested case will catch the government, all the media, and people's alert and concerns. Early preparation (this, Thanks for the close proximity to China and the 2003 SARS Lessons), transparent and clear information, strictly enacted anti-viral laws, thorough communications between the Ministry of Health-n-Welfare and people, gaining both public and private support without violating civil liberties make Taiwan steadily combating the novel virus. The universal screening and testing are costly, nevertheless, they are still an endeavor now. The anti-viral actions are well executed, but, the potential second wave, relapses, and the asymptotic transmitters are still going on. Some epidemiologists reported the multiple strains of the virus through mutations making the anti-viral actions even more challenging:
March 27, "SAN FRANCISCO – At least eight strains of the coronavirus making their way around the globe, creating a trail of death and disease that scientists are tracking by their genetic footprints.
While much is unknown, hidden in the virus's unique microscopic fragments are clues to the origins of its original strain, how it behaves as it mutates and which strains are turning into conflagrations while others are dying out thanks to quarantine measures.
Huddled in once bustling and now almost empty labs, researchers who oversaw dozens of projects are instead focused on one goal: tracking the current strains of the SARS-CoV-2 virus that cause the illness COVID-19." Refer to https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2020/03/27/scientists-track-coronavirus-strains-mutation/5080571002/
I also shared an observation on facebook ( March 16 ) about a trip to a local hospital with a friend.
"The frontline register associates faced a sick role's severe coughing droplets without any basic protection gears. I reluctantly took out of my facial-mask from my bag to distance this sick role. That precarious action truly scared several people in the hospital. For, in this still peaceful region (during Mid March), the facial mask looks like a monster, particularly, worn by a non-Caucasian!!
Before I left the hospital, I found a courageous RN to share my thoughts and suggestion: "Please provide those frontline register associates, at least, with facial masks, in addition to your hospital's protective measures," because it only takes ONE, if not treated properly, to be exponentially spreading - all over the world - a mutable and intriguing nature of this deadly novel coronavirus - as simple as that!
Updated relevant information about the virus was shared on social media:
Many medical articles reported some characteristics of this virus. Here is one of them:
"In the case of the coronavirus COVID-19, exponential growth will occur in the disease rate in humans so long as:
a. there is at least one infected person in the population pool,
b .regular contact between infected and uninfected members of the population occurs,
c. and there are large numbers of uninfected potential hosts among the population." More details, refer to: https://www.forbes.com/sites/startswithabang/2020/03/17/why-exponential-growth-is-so-scary-for-the-covid-19-coronavirus/#b8909d4e9b29 .
Why so hard to understand it among a good amount of people? Though the vast territory, and the lower density of population (compared to China, India...) in the US. functions as a buffer to slow down the spreading, playing the Russian Roulette game to try out the luck amid different stages of the novel viruses may not be a good thing to do.
How many gains and tragedies would be invited by the protesting states and their protesters in widening the broken net to save "economy" with the whimsical virus rampantly roaming everywhere? Do the protesting states and their protesters rigorously abide by the three-stage protocols and rules before reopening? Are they aware of what is the most detrimental thing amid this crisis? Yes, you only need ONE, just only ONE untested carrier in your family, in your community can cause the horrific massive contagions. This is the faster and worse way to wear out and murder our frontline caregivers than the lack of PPEs.
How powerful the politico-ideological drive is "embedded" into those "innocent" people by some of the people-in-charge? The mass "innocent" people need conscientious policies, not the near-sighted, unprepared politicians' expedience.
From another perspective, people protest by their "own choice, or free will - 'guided by hidden forces?' " to embrace civil liberties, then any casualty through accidental infections, or death, the potential litigations may have nothing to do with the policy-making of the governments and officials.
Which politician ventures to "muddle" the sacrosanct "liberties"? Who are those with power-in-charge "rigorously" pampering voters with the gentle "advice" for social distancing? Who has GUTs to tell people the "truth" that life is more precious than money? Which politician dares to "lockdown" a town, a city, a state, and the whole nation, like Italy, the UK, Spain, Switzerland and the rest of EU countries did, so as Japan, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan - in order to put life before money?
I still cannot understand and don't get me wrong that I am a Luddite of the economy. It is just too shocking to see the states and their protesters' "Brave" actions (or challenging death, instead of the economy?) against the stay-at-home orders. Take a look at the rigor and stringency in enacting the safety law in the aforementioned countries!
It was really hard to post this message on social media:
Yes, the paradoxes of elections, re-elections, votings... of democracy.
Yes, the oxymorons of civil liberties in squandering liberties and lives.
A canary's outcry on February 28 (F):
Is this a hind-sight or fore-sight bias? Not lamenting, not finger-pointing, but things should not have been down to this way... It is just sadly unbelievable. Why do people need to pay such a gargantuanly high price in order to learn a lesson?
What was missing in the wake of the mass infections and deaths at the bottom-line? When did people-in-charge start collecting data and issue the necessary protocols for containment? How much has been done in tracking the contacted by the infected; disinfecting the placed visited; tracing the traveling history of the original infected; checking, and documenting the self-quarantine, isolation, or the euphemism of "social distancing in a civil society". When did people begin to take this deadly virus seriously? How many lives were lost amid all the confusion, unpreparedness entangled with the civil liberties/Bills of Right, and politicians' muddying the water? Then, not to mention the gigantic scale of the tough coordination, mobilization, and collaboration among 50 states and the federal government in searching for all the urgent needed medical personnel and materials. These enormously heavy tasks are just incomprehensible in the pursuit of LIBERTY, happiness, and LIFE.
It is really hard to see that saving lives turns into the second line of the daily pandemonious drama, while under "flattening the curve," "arguing this model, that model"..., the massive sorrow, sadness, hopelessness, and helplessness are frozen into a statistic number. The most cavalier and capricious massacring is occurring day by day...while the short-sighted/frightening egomaniac politicians are worsening the infected cases and the death tolls...
It is unfathomable for me to see the value of life turning into so insignificant, so brutally transitory since Wuhan tragedy, then, recurring in Italy, Spain, France, UK, and the rest of countries in Europe and now repeating in the US. and the rest of the regions or territories. Like an exhausted Italian doctor said that he had to follow a new rule to pull off the ventilators from the severely infected based on "the values of life in contributing to society" to determine who got scarce respirators. A nurse in the US. sharing the sad moment when without proper PPE, she had to work and "choose or witness" who might live and who would die in front of her eyes every day. Several caregivers reported the number of deaths was just shockingly unbelievable and how inadequate protective gears worsening the saving life condition, even though the daily good news about the available medical materials is increasing, while the infected cases and death tolls are climbing. Some infected people dare not to go to the hospital; the overwhelmed caregivers confront their own safety on a daily basis...and more shocks, pains, and sorrows will be told, while protesting against the stay-home policy is trendy in several less virally tested states...
All of these should not have been happening this way...
The very first time in my life, a question of " 'diversity' of this sort" challenges me. I taught Diversity Studies with 6 major themes of class, race, ethnicity, gender, sexuality, disability and their intersectionality for 12 years. One major underlined ground is about how the power-structure made and resources distributed, mainly, in the US.
I was shocked by the " 'diversity' in civil liberties/political ideologies, and geo-demography clandestinely affected by many intended and unintended consequences domestically.
The domestic " 'diverse voices' " entangled by the massive globalization process, could turn into such a horrific dragging machine in hindering the combating of this deadly virus. Ironically, in contrast to the totalitarian and semi-authoritarian regimes/countries, one voice and one action make things moving faster and effectively.
These two posters, at that juncture, shared the above concerns:
The following posters are some of my daily prayers and thoughts:
On March 5 (Th)
On March 26
On Feb. 28
On March 16
On March 24
Posting the concerns, worries, and care on social media during the viral crisis, perhaps, is just a way for self-psychotherapy...
Recalling Dr. Li, the first whistle-blower of the novel virus in Wuhan, died for being a canary in a dangerous coal-mine...
Some of the above-recollected facts, for better or worse, during the last few weeks lead to a short conclusion:
"Every day is never a too-late-day to reinforce the strength with one mind, one soul, persistently, rigorously, fighting against this deadly invisible enemy!
This, shall pass. We Will overcome..."
"Every day is never a too-late-day to reinforce the strength with one mind, one soul, persistently, rigorously, fighting against this deadly invisible enemy!
This, shall pass. We Will overcome..."
