“Currently, there is NO confirmed case or known community spread of Coronovirus Disease (COVID-19) in Granville County, as of March 13, 2020, and the risk to most residents remains low.”
-Lisa Harrison, Director, Granville Vance Public Health
As the nation learns more about the pandemic of Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19), Granville Vance Public Health wants to make it clear that public health officials on the local level are ready to respond and are currently active in surveillance, testing, monitoring and providing guidance information to individuals and agencies daily.
“We are in the initial containment stage of this virus in North Carolina and we are simultaneously moving to mitigate any community spread that may exist undetected,” said Lisa Macon Harrison, health director at Granville Vance Public Health (GVPH). “If we act now, and work together, we can make a difference in preventing extra stress our health care system from the number of cases that may grow to be more serious.”
GVPH has released guidance and information to help focus on those most at risk to develop a more serious strain of COVID-19 and be more likely to have complications. “There is a lot we still don’t know about this virus, but what we do know clearly is that age and underlying health status make a big difference,” Harrison said.
Many of the recommendations are focused on protecting people at higher risk of severe illness who include adults over 65 years of age, people with underlying health conditions including heart disease, lung disease, or diabetes, or people with weakened immune systems.
“This time of year it is easy to confuse the symptoms of coronavirus with the common cold, with allergies, or the flu – all of which are prevalent,” Harrison explains. “The symptoms of Coronavirus are fever, cough, or shortness of breath.”
A global dashboard in real time is available on the Granville Vance Public Health web site, https://gvph.org/COVID-19/?fbclid=IwAR0OG3rWzcK4EjI4k4-nM-wKmrGy3XjGZjzLILQluBPgvEiIbu14c4h4xlg.
According to Harrison, Coronavirus can be serious, of course, but getting Coronavirus isn’t severe for everyone. “We do not yet understand why, but often children tend to fare well and get a really light version of the virus and get better relatively quickly from what we know so far,” she says.
Harrison adds that it is important to get information about this pandemic from trusted fact-based sources like the CDC, the World Health Organization, the NC Division of Public Health, and your local health department, Granville Vance Public Health. Regardless of risk status, there are things people can do to protect themselves and their loved ones from COVID-19 are the same things that will protect them from the flu:
- Wash your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds. If soap and water are not available, use a generous amount of hand sanitizer, with at least 60% alcohol, on all surfaces of the hands and wrists.
- Don’t touch your eyes, nose or mouth.
- Avoid contact with people are are sick.
- Disinfect surfaces – especially ones that are frequently touched – using household cleaning spray or wipes.
- Cover coughs and sneezes with a tissue, throw the tissue in the trash and wash your hands.
- Stay home if you’re sick;
- Be comfortable with change and understand we are all still learning.
What to do and when to seek medical evaluation and advice:
- If you or a family member has fever AND cough or difficulty breathing, call your healthcare provider or an urgent care if you do not have a healthcare provider.
- If you have fever, cough, and shortness of breath, do NOT show up at your healthcare provider’s office or the urgent care without calling first. They really need to know you’re coming.
- Do NOT go to the emergency room unless you are in severe distress. Emergency rooms need to be able to serve the most critically ill.
- If you are having a medical emergency, call 9-1-1 and tell them your symptoms.
- You may also call the statewide Coronavirus Helpline at 1-866-462-3821, which is answered 24 hours a day / 7 days a week.
People at higher risk include those age 65 and older, those with underlying health conditions including heart disease, lung disease, or diabetes, and those who have weakened immune systems.
Residents are asked to turn to accurate sources of information from the CDC (www.cdc.gov) and State Division of Public Health (https://www.ncdhhs.gov/divisions/public-health/coronavirus-disease-2019-covid-19-response-north-carolina) as well as your own local public health officials. Granville Vance Public Health will provide the most up-to-date and accurate information for COVID-19 in their district online at https://gvph.org/.