This week we saw a surge in numbers close to home. A local nursing home in Mt Airy saw 60 new cases over the weekend. Governor Hogan has a stay at home order as of March 30, 8 pm stressing that more is needed to control the rates of infections. Please understand that this virus can infect ANY age group and is not limited to the elderly patients. Although it is still predominantly affecting ages over 60 there are increasing numbers of hospitalizations for those ages 20-40 as well as in infants and children. Everyone needs to take precautions and stay at home to control the spread.
As a result of these new measures, we at Shakthi are committed to keeping our patients, staff, and community safe from the spread. We are taking the following measures:
- All appointments will be virtual through telemedicine or phone calls many insurances are covering reimbursement for these now
- All non-essential appointments are on hold. These include sauna, reiki, acupuncture, alpha stim, biomat and energy medicine. We have also held blood draws, cognitive testing, and cardiac testing till we see the infection rates controlled.
Please keep in mind, we are here for you. You can still communicate through email, portal, and phone. Our staff is available to answer questions, and Dr. Rao can take appointments daily. We continue to strive to bring you timely care.
Update on symptoms: Since last week there has been discussion of other symptoms associated with COVID 19 infections.
- loss of smell
- conjunctivitis
- diarrhea, nausea or vomiting
As with most of the symptoms, it can be other viruses other than the one responsible for COVID-19 which can cause respiratory tract or GI symptoms. As of today, there are no official treatments for COVID-19. Trials are ongoing on the use of hydroxychloroquine as prevention drug and for treatment alone and with azithromycin. Promising results but no official guidelines have been recommended.
As of now, the best way to treat is to prevent it and support your immune system.
Support your immune system:
- Nourish your body with healthy foods and eat the rainbow (lots of bright colored fruits and vegetables)
- Drink warm lemon water daily try to drink 8 cups of water a day.
- Cook with spices! Ginger, rosemary, garlic, turmeric, etc.
- Prioritize your sleep establish a bedtime ritual.
- Try to get a morning ritual for stretches, meditation, and yoga practice.
- AVOID the bombardment of the news and social media inflicting negative emotions.
A fever, if it is not causing excess fatigue or severe discomfort, can actually be protective. If you do need to reduce it, please use acetaminophen for body aches and high fevers and not ibuprofen or aspirin. This topic is still controversial, but it is best to take acetaminophen just to be safe. For those of you on a low-dose aspirin regimen, please do not stop without speaking to your physician first.
Who should get tested?
Here are the guidelines from the CDC. There are new tests which are planned to roll out over the coming weeks for home use and quick turnaround times. We will update you on these as they evolve.
PRIORITY 1
Ensure optimal care options for all hospitalized patients, lessen the risk of nosocomial infections, and maintain the integrity of the healthcare system
- Hospitalized patients
- Symptomatic healthcare workers
PRIORITY 2
Ensure that those who are at highest risk of complication of infection are rapidly identified and appropriately triaged
- Patients in long-term care facilities with symptoms
- Patients 65 years of age and older with symptoms
- Patients with underlying conditions with symptoms
- First responders with symptoms
PRIORITY 3
As resources allow, test individuals in the surrounding community of rapidly increasing hospital cases to decrease community spread, and ensure health of essential workers
- Critical infrastructure workers with symptoms
- Individuals who do not meet any of the above categories with symptoms
- Health care workers and first responders
- Individuals with mild symptoms in communities experiencing high COVID-19 hospitalizations
NON-PRIORITY
- Individuals without symptoms
We found this video to be helpful to keep us safe after grocery shopping:
We will get through this. We will be here for you to guide you through health issues. Use this time to try new things. Focus on your family and building your resilience for now. Take on new hobbies and connect to friends and family virtually. Above all, please try to stay calm.