Novel Coronavirus

The Noval Coronavirus, everything you need to know.

Update 23 March 2020 the government is now introducing three new measures:

Only go outside for food, health reasons or essential work.
Stay 2 metres (6ft) away from other people
Wash your hands as soon as you get home

What is the Noval Coronavirus (COVID-19)?

Novel coronavirus (COVID-19) has been designated a high consequence infectious disease (HCID). COVID 19 is a new virus from the coronavirus family that includes SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome) and MERS (Middle East Respiratory Syndrome).

Coronavirus are zoonotic (transmitted between animals and people) RNA virus and this one is thought to have started in a fish/animal market in China.

COVID-19 for most individuals causes mild to moderate illness, but in addition may result in pneumonia or severe acute respiratory infection.

What are the symptoms of coronavirus?

The symptoms of coronavirus are:

Cough
Runny nose
Sore throat
High temperature
shortness of breath

But these symptoms do not necessarily mean you have the illness as they are similar to other illnesses that are much more common, such as cold and flu.

Please stay at home if you have:

a new, continuous cough (coughing repeatedly)
a high temperature (you feel hot to touch on your chest and back) 37.8 degrees or higher

DO NOT GO TO A GP SURGERY, PHARMACY OR HOSPITAL. This increases the risk of infection to others.

if you have symptoms, you are advised to stay at home for 7 days and self isolate regardless of your travel history or contact with confirmed cases
if you live with other people, they should stay at home for 14 days from the day the first person got symptoms

Please be aware a cough may persist for several weeks in some people, despite any possible infection having cleared. A persistent cough alone does not mean that someone must continue to stay isolated for more than 7 days.

If your conditions get worse and your symptoms do not get better after 7 days please seek further help and advice using the NHS 111 online service https://111.nhs.uk/covid-19/

For more information please click this link: https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/coronavirus-covid-19/

To prevent further spread of infection it is important to:

Wash your hands regularly for at least 20 seconds at a time to kill bacteria,
Always wash your hands when you get home or into work
Cover your nose and mouth when sneezing and coughing,
Avoid close contact with anyone showing symptoms of respiratory illness such as coughing and sneezing
Put used tissues in the bin straight away and wash your hands afterwards
Use hand sanitiser gel if soap and water are not available
Only travel on public transport if you need to
Work from home, if you can
Avoid social activities, such as going to pubs, restaurants, theatres and cinemas
Avoid events with large groups of people
Use phone, online services or apps to contact your GP surgery or other NHS services

Don’t:

Do not touch your eyes, nose or mouth if your hands are not clean
Do not have visitors to your home, including friends and family

Please see the below link for guidance on social distancing for everyone in the UK and protecting older people and vulnerable adults. Information includes: what steps you can take to stay connected with family and friends during this time, how you can look after your mental wellbeing during this time, advice if you live with a vulnerable person and advice on how you can get assistance with foods and medicines if you have reduced social contacts. This Gov.uk guidance page also gives an easy, clear summary of advice in the form of a table for different ages and health conditions, after clicking the link please scroll down to view the useful table at the bottom of the page:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/covid-19-guidance-on-social-distancing-and-for-vulnerable-people/guidance-on-social-distancing-for-everyone-in-the-uk-and-protecting-older-people-and-vulnerable-adults

Advice to patients

If you are experiencing symptoms, however mild, please SELF ISOLATE at home and seek advice from NHS 111.

DO NOT visit your GP Surgery; this will increase the risk of infection to others.

If you suspect you may have COVID-19:

Use the NHS111 online coronavirus service to find out what to do next (it’s a few simple questions and then tells you what to do!) https://111.nhs.uk/service/covid-19