Covid-19 has been dictating our lives for most of 2020 and as predictions go, it won’t end any time soon. With corona virus cases on the rise in Pakistan, hospitals have stopped accommodating new patients as they have reached their full capacity of beds and ventilators. Moreover, pharmacies have either run out of life-saving medications or the price of drugs have sky-rocketed, making them out of people’s reach and affordability.
A lot of people, who test positive for coronavirus, present with mild-to-moderate symptoms of this disease such as fever, cough, diarrhea, body aches, conjunctivitis, headache, fatigue and loss of taste and smell. These individuals don’t need to go to a health care facility if they don’t have severe respiratory symptoms like difficulty in breathing, an under-lying medical condition or are aged less than 65 years. The best thing to do in such a situation for the corona positive individuals would be to isolate themselves at home. Staying in a hospital is not only mentally taxing but it can further increase the chances of getting various other hospital acquired infections. Also, this would decrease the workload on our already exhausted health care system, providing breathing space to our frontline workers and enable patients who actually require hospital care to be treated with more attention and care.
With numerous messages circulating on social-media and Whatsapp groups, one doesn’t understand what to follow and what to ignore when dealing with this ailment. Being a medical student myself and belonging to a family of doctors, here’s a first-hand experience of how I along with my family dealt with corona virus when we tested positive for it.
If you experience symptoms of fever, c 7 ough, body aches, diarrhea and your corona test comes out to be positive, start taking the following precautions. If you have these symptoms and corona test is negative, still take these precautions as the test result can be false negative as well.
Precautions:
1. The person positive for corona should be kept in a separate room in isolation (till he/she tests negative twice with test repeated at 48-hour interval) with windows to decrease the viral load. If it is necessary to go to the room of an infected person, personal protective equipment (PPE) such as gloves and masks should be used and subsequently disposed of when leaving the room. The person interacting with a COVID-19 patient should wash his hands thoroughly before and after exiting the room. Give cell operated door bells to older patients when they’re not well enough so they can get attention of the care provider.
2. Leave the food outside in disposable plates and cups which should be discarded by the patients themselves.
3. Separate bathroom should be used by the corona positive patient.
4. Clean all door knobs and handles along with the surfaces with the disinfectant spray in order to decrease the viral load.
5. All clothes and bed linen should be washed separately with standard detergent, dettol and warm water.
Equipment to keep at home:
1. Thermometer
2. Pulse Oximeter
3. Gloves, Masks and protective aprons
4. Disposable plates and cups or separate utensils for food
5. Disinfectant solution
6. Soap and hand sanitizers
General Lifestyle Measures:
1. Hydration – keep yourself hydrated specially in case of vomiting and diarrhea; fresh juices and milkshakes can be used to replace lost fluids
2. High calorie diet – make sure you’re having enough proteins and food intake in general is adequate so you don’t feel weak and your body can fight off this virus
3. Lying in prone position (on your stomach) and taking deep breaths for 1 hour after every 3 hours is recommended
4. Regular steams will clear up your nasal path and relieve any flu like symptoms
5. Don’t over exert yourself but keep moving around to prevent coagulation and thrombosis (clotting of blood) and to keep lung function in check. Try relaxation exercises such as deep breathing, stretching and meditation.
6. Get enough sleep
7. Keep connected to your loved ones through phone and video calls as this helps to reduce stress
What to monitor at home everyday:
1. Check and record your temperature thrice daily
2. Check oxygen saturation pulse oximeter thrice daily (normal at rest saturation is 98% and less than 94% is worrisome)
Symptoms that may appear worrisome but may only need time:
1. A lot of myalgia
2. Spiking of fever
3. Changes in bowel pattern (loose stools)
4. Some dyspnea due to exertion, walking or going to the bathroom
5. Development of a rash
6. Anorexia
Symptoms that require hospitalization:
1. Oxygen saturation equal to or less than 94%
2. Altered mentation
3. Signs of dehydration
4. Tachypnea of greater than 25 breaths/min
5. Visible respiratory distress while resting
The author is final year student at Army Medical College