Key Things to Understand When Facing a Pandemic

When you turn on the news today, chances are the first thing you will hear is about the coronavirus pandemic. As a former public health professional, I’m fascinated by what’s happening. However, as a mom, family member, and friend, I’m a bit on edge.

As many of you know, I take time each September (which is National Preparedness Month) to share straightforward, practical information about disaster preparedness (you can see all of these posts here). We’re obviously not in September, but I’m going to take some time today to share some important things to remember when facing a pandemic.

Most of my knowledge of this topic comes from my background in public health and nursing. I have a Master of Public Health, a Bachelor of Science in Education in Community Health, and a Bachelor of Science in Nursing. I used these degrees to work as a nurse and as a public health professional for a number of years before stepping out of the workplace to be a stay-at-home mom. This means I have an interest in and some knowledge of public health, but I’m certainly not an expert, so be sure to refer to the references I’ve scattered throughout this post if you want additional details.

What is a pandemic?

You are probably hearing numerous terms that refer to levels of disease. What do these terms mean? Here are some definitions (source):

• An epidemic is an increase (often sudden) in the number of cases of a disease above what is normally expected in the population in a given area.
  • An outbreak is the same as an epidemic, but it is generally used to refer to a more limited geographic area.
  • A cluster refers to an aggregation of cases grouped in both place and time.
• A pandemic is an epidemic that has spread over several countries or continents, often affecting significant numbers of individuals.

Another bit of useful information during this current pandemic is the terminology used to refer to the disease. A coronavirus is a virus from a large family of viruses that can cause illness in animals and humans. In humans, several coronaviruses cause respiratory illnesses including the common cold, SARS, and MERS. The novel coronavirus that is of concern right now is technically called severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). However, you hear health officials use the term COVID-19 (short for coronavirus disease 2019) when referring to the virus because this is the official term used to describe the disease (i.e., the symptoms) caused by the virus (source).

Important information about pandemics

In some respects, pandemics are like natural disasters (the events we often address when discussing disaster preparedness), but they have some unique characteristics that require us to plan and respond differently than we would to events like hurricanes, tornadoes, or earthquakes. I’ve summarized these differences in a table.

The basic principles of disaster preparedness are as relevant to pandemics as to other disasters. Therefore, it is best if you have a disaster preparedness kit to see you through a pandemic (see what to include in a kit here and how to acquire your supplies here). However, the differences I noted in the table mean there are a few additional things to consider.

What supplies you need

When it comes to supplies, there are two main things you want to be prepared for. One is having to stay home for a couple of weeks. You want to have enough food, essential supplies (such as toilet paper, diapers/wipes, soap, toothpaste, etc.), and prescription medications that you can remain home if you are asked to self-isolate or quarantine. The second thing you want to be prepared for is interruptions in supply chains. If a pandemic gets bad enough, then it is possible that manufacturers will have a difficult time getting raw materials, employees may be unable to come to work at factories, and drivers/pilots may be unable to transport the good to stores. Thus, it is wise to gather some extra supplies at the onset of a pandemic, but you do not need to gather a year’s worth of toilet paper.

A word about water, flashlights, and generators

Unlike natural disasters such as hurricanes and earthquakes, it is unlikely that a pandemic will cause an interruption in electricity and water. The companies that produce these utilities should have plans in place for keeping their services up and running during a pandemic. However, if a pandemic is severe enough, there could be interruptions. Water is an essential component of a disaster preparedness kit, so you should always have some on hand, but it is very unlikely you will need extra. Likewise, you should not need a generator or lots of batteries and flashlights.

A word about cost

Supplies cost money, so many of us are concerned about how to afford these supplies. A very important thing to consider is that during disasters, including pandemics, the focus is on survival. In other words, you don’t need fancy meals, you just need something to eat. Thus, it’s a good idea to stock your emergency kit with affordable foods such as the following (these are the prices at a local Walmart):

• $1.46 for a 2 lb. bag of rice
• $1.32 for a 1 lb. bag of black beans
• $0.68 for a 5 oz. can of tuna
• $0.58 for a 15 oz. can of mixed veggies
• $2.33 for a 42 oz. canister of oatmeal

You might get tired of eating the same foods over and over again, but foods like these will get you through! Another important thing to keep in mind is that this is a great time to demonstrate love to our neighbors (Mark 12:31). Check in with neighbors, coworkers, fellow church members, etc. and make sure they have the food and supplies they need. Pay close attention to those who may be unable to make it to the store to purchase these items (elderly, individuals with chronic medical conditions, individuals with limited financial resources, etc.). Buy extra and donate to local food banks. Be generous and help as many individuals as you can.

A word about soap, hand sanitizers, cleaning products, and PPE

You do need to make sure you have soap so you can wash your hands (and wash them often). It’s also important to have hand sanitizer so you can clean your hands when you don’t have access to soap and water (like when you run to get groceries). Likewise, it is wise to have some cleaning products on hand that will kill viruses (see a list here). However, you do not need excessive quantities of these, nor do you need to stock up on gloves and masks. Please, please follow the recommendations of public health experts when it comes to personal protective equipment (PPE). If citizens up their demand for things like gloves and masks, then manufacturers will try to replenish stores’ supplies of these, meaning less effort and raw materials will be available for manufacturing them for health care professionals—the individuals who need them the most.

Interruptions in work, school, travel, and recreation

Many things have been cancelled and more will be in the coming days. It’s inconvenient, but it’s necessary. With a natural disaster such as a tornado or flood, there may be some schools, stores, office buildings, etc. that are destroyed. However, in a pandemic, they are all shut down. This means your kids can’t be sent to a neighboring school and the grocery store in the next town won’t be any better stocked than the one in your community.

If you haven’t already done so, begin thinking about how you will handle these interruptions. What will you do with your kids if school is cancelled? What will you do if you are asked to work from home? What will you do if someone in your family gets the disease and you must remain at home for a few weeks? It’s inconvenient, but it’s necessary to flatten the curve (see below for what this means).

Implications for health care providers, patients, and hospitals

There are many things that epidemiologists and other public health professionals consider about a new virus. For example, just how communicable is it? How many people who get it will die? How many people will require hospitalization? How many will require ICU care?

You may hear some people saying that this is just a bad flu. Likewise, you may hear some saying that the flu kills more people each year than COVID-19 or even that car accidents kill more people than COVID-19. I’m going to clarify a few important things here. First of all, everything we know about COVID-19 indicates it is not like a bad flu. COVID-19 is more infectious (more people will get it and it will spread faster), it will last longer (not just a few days), and it will kill more people who test positive (especially those at high risk, such as older adults and those with other health problems). Second, comparing the current COVID-19 pandemic to seasonal flu or car accidents is an apples-to-oranges comparison.

It is factually true that seasonal flu and car accidents kill more people in the U.S. each year than COVID-19 has killed thus far. However, one of the biggest issues with COVID-19 right now isn’t the fatality rate (though this is higher than that of seasonal flu), it is with the capacity of our health care system. Roughly 20% of those infected will have severe enough symptoms that they will require hospital care. If we don’t work together to control the spread of this virus, we will not have enough hospital beds and supplies to treat those who need critical care. Likewise, there will not be enough hospital beds and supplies for those who need them for other health issues (heart attacks, trauma from car accidents, strokes, etc.).

These aren’t alarmist statements; they simply point out the reality. Doctors in Italy have already begun prioritizing care based on likelihood of survival. One doctor in Italy put it this way: “If a patient came to the hospital with severe respiratory failure, it’s likely that the doctor ‘won’t go ahead’ with treatment,” especially if the patient is old or has other medical conditions (source). This is why you hear public health folks saying we need to “flatten the curve.” All this means is that we need to stay home as much as possible so that we limit the spread of the virus. This will mean fewer people come down with it and that the cases that do happen don’t happen so quickly that they overwhelm the health care system.

To put this in terms everyone will understand right now, think about the grocery store. If you go to the store right now, what do you find? Empty shelves. There’s no toilet paper, milk, eggs, or canned goods. This is because everyone rushed out at once and bought supplies. If everyone gets sick at once, this is how hospitals will look. There will be no beds available, no gloves, no masks, and no available nurses. We can’t have everyone getting sick at once. It will overwhelm hospitals and more people will die than if hospitals could effectively care for patients. Please stay home as much as you can.

Final thoughts

This is an incredibly long post, but I’m glad you took the time to read it. I hope it has been informative. Fear and panic spread just like viruses, so don’t give in to these. However, love also spreads like a virus, and cheer is good medicine (Proverbs 17:22). Let’s spread these latter things as we work together to keep our families and communities safe.

If you have any specific questions that I might be able to answer, please ask these below. Likewise, if you have any useful ideas or insights for the rest of us, please share these.

Shared at the following:

Farm Fresh Tuesday, Busy Monday, Over the Moon, and Encouraging Hearts and Home.