COVID-19 (SARS CoV-2) Information
COVID-19 (caused by a virus called SARS CoV-2) is a zoonotic disease that originated in China’s Hubei province in late November 2019. Symptoms are lower respiratory tract-related, with cough, achy muscles, and fever – and only rarely involve upper respiratory (runny nose) symptoms.
Since it is a new disease, a few statistics have been collected. Healthy children and young people tend to have only had mild symptoms. On average, though, 80% of people will have no symptoms, or only mild illness. Many times they will go about their lives unknowingly spreading the virus to others. Elderly people, will have more serious illness, so we would encourage them to only venture out if it is absolutely necessary, and to limit contact with their grandchildren who may carry the illness without exhibiting symptoms.
The Florida DOH has asked us on to test people that meet specific criteria, namely people with cough, fever, shortness of breath and history of travel in the past month to a hot zone in China, South Korea, Iran, Italy, or Japan. We have asked LabCorp and Quest to send us a few testing kits while we see where this is headed. Testing kits are being obtained from Quest and LabCorp.
AdventHealth has a done a fantastic job setting up an COVID-19 Information Hotline at 1-877-VIRUSHQ (1-877-847-8747), and they have developed a curbside COVID-19 testing system through three CentraCare locations located along the I-4 corridor:
AdventHealth Centra Care Orange City,
AdventHealth Centra Care Lee Road, and
AdventHealth Centra Care Lake Buena Vista.
The FL Dept of Health has a COVID-19 hotline as well, at 1-866-779-6121, and an email you can use for information: COVID-19@flhealth.gov
The take-home message is that if your child has only mild symptoms (mild cough and low grade fever), and do not know if you have COVID-19, you should try to stay at home for at least the first seven days. If your symptoms worsen, seek medical care, and alert your primary care provider. They may test you for COVID-19 at that time. Absolutely avoid visiting elderly people, nursing homes, hospitals, consider yourself contagious to others, and avoid unnecessary visits to large gatherings, or enclosed areas with multiple people.
