Hello friends,
God bless you and yours with excellent health especially now.
I am going to get straight to the point because people are not taking the “Stay home” warning seriously. I’ve lived in five countries and I am here to basically give you insight from what is going on with people I know from my community who live in New York, United Kingdom, Italy, and Spain. These are the countries that have been hit hard by COVID-19 after China, and New York City has more infections than France or South Korea right now mainly because people are not staying home. I will let you know what one consultant anaesthetist working in supposedly one of the best hospitals in the UK have said so that YOU can understand why YOU need to, I repeat imperative that YOU stay home. Currently, the world out there on social media are putting posts urging people to stay home.
I have friends overseas who are recovering from COVID-19 while some people have lost some family members. Here in South Africa, we are beginning lockdown this Thursday. We have jumped from last Monday; 71 to this morning 407 cases and upwards. I am concerned about my close family member who is working in a pharmacy right now and I urge you to take the STAY HOME warning seriously, let me show you why? Please, let us not get to where other countries who are now having to deal with hospitals full of people are facing that even doctors and the people serving YOU are at risk of losing their lives.
EVERYONE, PLEASE LEARN FROM WHAT YOU WILL BE PRESENTED WITH BELOW. SHARE THIS ARTICLE WITH PEOPLE – IGNORANCE IS COSTLY AND, IN THIS CASE, IGNORANCE IS GOING TO COST US MANY LIVES IF WE DO NOT FOLLOW THE MEASURES PUT IN PLACE.
Spain
Currently in Spain https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/country/spain/
The below as of 13:33, British time, 24 March 2020
39 673 cases
2 696 deaths
3 796 recovered
3 910 health care workers from the total amount of cases Health workers hard-hit – Spain
I have lived in Madrid, and Spain was (I don’t know now) known for having the best health care system and specialists that even people from other countries in Europe especially the UK got their treatments done there. Today, just 20 hours ago this news came in. Take a look, people are sleeping in corridors in what they call “urgencias,” meaning emergency. The death toll is on the rise in Spain. Corona Virus daily death toll – Spain – Patients lying in hospital corridors.
Italy
Currently in Italy https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/country/italy/
The below as of 13:34, British time, 24 March 2020
63 927 cases
6 077 deaths
7 432 recovered
+- 5000 health care workers from the total amount of cases, 24 deaths here Names of the 24 health care workers that died by contracting the Coronavirus.
What can we learn from Italy?
On the 11th of March 2020, Italy had to decide who lives, who dies.
In lockdown, Italy deciding who lives who dies
The northern Italian region of Lombardy is the epicentre of the Coronavirus and are now practising “disaster medicine.” The hospitals have run short of intensive care beds, respirators, and the older you are the lower you are on the priority list.
11 March 2020, Italy – Who gets hospital beds?
United Kingdom
Currently in the United Kingdom https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/country/uk/
The below as of 13:59, British time on the 24 March 2020
6 650 cases
335 deaths
135 recovered
Health care workers are afraid while 16 hours ago Boris Johnson issues a simple instruction; “Stay at home.” In the article below he mentions the reasons people can leave their homes; to go and exercise, shop for basic necessities, address a medical need, provide care for others, travel to and from work where absolutely necessary. The UK is restricting public movement at levels not seen since WWII.
Buying more than what people need is making it difficult for frontline workers to get anything such as doctors, nurses and NHS support staff. It’s an emergency law that has the right to detain people and put them in isolation to protect the public health. Boris Johnson urges the public to use food delivery services.
An image from one of our community members from the UK who went shopping for herself and her kids after a long day.
This is a message from a consultant anaesthetist from one of the best hospitals in the UK.
“All anaesthetists are being re-rolled as intensive care doctors. We will be tasked with putting the sickest patients under anaesthetic and onto ventilators/life support machines. Each patient will require 10 days + on a ventilator then may need a temporary tracheostomy to get them the ventilator.
The intensive care unit is already full of COVID-19 patients on ventilators (12) with more requiring ventilation every day. My hospital usually has 4-10 patients on ventilators and is planning and EXPECTING 80 patients to require ventilation.
It seems the public health message is not getting through. Let me be clear. A lot of people are going to die. They will mainly be 70 years plus but be in no doubt, 30-40-year olds will die too.
Pubs have been busy, offices open, social events happening, kids’ parties etc. It all needs to stop. Infected people shed virus and it must be everywhere by now. It is your social responsibility to engage in social distancing. Actions NOW can prevent further disease transmission, ICU admissions and deaths in 10-20 days.
Two of my anaesthetic/ICU colleagues in other hospitals are off work due to being infected (doing ok). As health care workers, we are now EXPECTING to catch it despite PPE. This virus has been transmitted around the globe unchecked and will not stop until it has nowhere to go – social distancing/isolation or patient death.”
I cannot comment on what is going on a personal level for this person but if people do not STAY HOME people like this man has to isolate himself to protect his family.
United States of America
Currently in the United States of America https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/country/us/
The below as of 14:22, British time on the 24 March 2020
46 168 cases
582 deaths
295 recovered
This is the most shocking part for me personally:
New York
38 people test positive in New York City jails.
As of today, Tuesday morning, 24 March 2020 New York Coronavirus updates
- 21 689 total cases in New York State
- 157 deaths
- 13 119 cases in New York City
South Africa
Currently, in South Africa, South Africa’s Coronavirus cases reach 554 country braces for lockdown.
The below as of 14:59, British time on the 24 March 2020
554 cases
4 totally recovered
2 critical
Furthermore this morning there were long queues going round the parking lot with people stocking up https://youtu.be/HQm8NH6J-co.
Global numbers
Currently, https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/
The below as of 16:50, British time, 24 March 2020
396 236 cases
17 250 deaths
103 748 recovered
Please stay home and starve this virus.
Yours sincerely,
T. Dench Patel
Thank you for the comments and support. Thank you for offering to donate if there was a donate button on here. I prefer not to take donations. You can support by either purchasing one of my books (Paperback or Kindle), The South African: True Colours, The South African: Roamer or my children’s book Light. These books can be found on Amazon mainly and other sites in your country.
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