# Coronavirus Type 1 Diabetic



## Avril.1 (Feb 27, 2020)

Hey everyone,

I am newly diagnosed a few months with Type 1 diabetes, recently I have been very concerned about all the talk about Coronavirus and how for  people with diabetes it is a lot more dangerous, should diabetics be as worried as they are saying in the media etc.

Thank you very much


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## everydayupsanddowns (Feb 27, 2020)

I don’t think there is anything to be unduly worried about as a T1.

Remember that 90% of people with diabetes have T2 and are (on average) more elderly. And it seems to be older people who are more at risk. Tbh I’m not all that convinced that there is much to be worried about for the vast majority of T2s either.

Long term conditions do carry extra risk, and illness can be a bit of a nuisance (and cause BG upheaval) when you live with diabetes.

But flu kills far more people every year (with additional risk if you live with diabetes) - so I wouldn’t be any more vexed about corona (particularly while there are still only 13cases in the U.K.) than you would be every winter about Flu.


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## Tee G (Feb 27, 2020)

Hi @Avril.1 - they like to sell newspapers dont they!   I agree with @everydayupsanddowns - and his observations.  Along with that...Im an asthmatic, and i hear talk in the media about that being of great concern.  TBH im more worried about my husband and his nail biting habit - every time we go outside, shopping, or whatever i say wash your hands!  i must say it 10 times a day LOL  (we have 2 local surgery's close down for a week recently for 'deep cleans')  I wonder is Lidl is safe? LOL


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## Josh DUK (Feb 28, 2020)

Here is our statement regarding the coronavirus. 








						Coronavirus and diabetes updates
					

All the coronavirus information below applies to the whole of the UK, unless specified. We've noted where are some differences in guidance and diabetes services across the UK.




					www.diabetes.org.uk


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## Docb (Feb 28, 2020)

Josh, looking at the quote in your post.  It talks about risk but the risk of what? Risk of catching it? Risk of being mildly inconvenienced by it? Risk of dying from it? 

I really do wish people would stop talking about risk in such a cavalier fashion.


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## Josh DUK (Feb 28, 2020)

Docb said:


> Josh, looking at the quote in your post.  It talks about risk but the risk of what? Risk of catching it? Risk of being mildly inconvenienced by it? Risk of dying from it?
> 
> I really do wish people would stop talking about risk in such a cavalier fashion.



We received many queries about it and we thought it would be best if we shared where you can find information and support.


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## Docb (Feb 28, 2020)

Just read the whole thing and I see what you are trying to do, and it is done well.  My point still holds although it should be directed at the sources you are using rather than DUK.


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## atoll (Feb 28, 2020)

as you are young and only recently diagnosed, and if you keep your control level good or at least below 10mmol fasting you should be no more at risk than any other mortal.
elevated sugar levels for extended periods will make you more susceptible to infection so eat ,exercise,sleep as you would normally.
wash hands regularly etc,avoid public spaces as in the NHS guidelines.


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## zoombapup (Feb 28, 2020)

I think that the risk for CoronaVirus for diabetics with other conditions is probably bigger. Sleep Apnoea for instance is likely to have a higher risk factor (apparently people have respiration problems with the virus). The mortality rate isn't absolutely clear yet though, but honestly I'm in a very high risk situation (work at a University with a bunch of international students all coming and going from places like China and Italy), so I think unless you're at a place like mine, your overall risk is going to be very low.

So consider me the canary in the coalmine if you like. If I go down, you're in trouble


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## trophywench (Feb 28, 2020)

We do our shopping in large supermarkets since that means we can get virtually everything we need in one fell swoop, hence we are exposed to all sorts of germs when we do.  Pete with his COPD seems to have trouble whenever he's been in close proximity to any group of people and the GP waiting room is one of the very worst places he sometimes has to visit it seems to me, which is logical cos the seats are close together really whereas only the checkout queues in large shops hold the same risks.

It's tricky, isn't it!


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## Tee G (Feb 28, 2020)

I dont think i like the thought of an aeroplane with this 'flying' around at the mo - pun intended  ...... My friend is due to go an a cruise in May!! (her first, ooops)  she has been sent an email saying checks will be carried out each time they embark i.e. at every stop on the tour - can you imagine if you get carted off because they 'suspect' something is awry.  Rather her than me!  Good luck with that one !


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## Amity Island (Feb 28, 2020)

Avril.1 said:


> Hey everyone,
> 
> I am newly diagnosed a few months with Type 1 diabetes, recently I have been very concerned about all the talk about Coronavirus and how for  people with diabetes it is a lot more dangerous, should diabetics be as worried as they are saying in the media etc.
> 
> Thank you very much


What I do know is that the quote from the chief medical officer today saying that they may close all schools for two months if they can't contain the virus, would in effect, shut the whole country down. No schools means parents at home looking after them, means a huge number of people not at work. It would have a huge impact on everything.


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## atoll (Feb 28, 2020)

Amity Island said:


> What I do know is that the quote from the chief medical officer today saying that they may close all schools for two months if they can't contain the virus, would in effect, shut the whole country down. No schools means parents at home looking after them, means a huge number of people not at work. It would have a huge impact on everything.



currently flu kills globally 640,000 yearly(cfr0.1%) and this is 20 times more deadly(cfr2.0%) so has the potential to kill 12.8 million yearly if unchecked.

short term inconvenience and disruption will be a small price to pay to stop this virus becoming endemic.


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## Amity Island (Feb 28, 2020)

atoll said:


> currently flu kills globally 640,000 yearly(cfr0.1%) and this is 20 times more deadly(cfr2.0%) so has the potential to kill 12.8 million yearly if unchecked.
> 
> short term inconvenience and disruption will be a small price to pay to stop this virus becoming endemic.


I agree, preventing the spread is the best option. Although I wouldn't describe an almost complete shut down of schools and work places, shops and high population venues and events as an inconvenience.


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## atoll (Feb 28, 2020)

Amity Island said:


> I agree, preventing the spread is the best option. Although I wouldn't describe an almost complete shut down of schools and work places, shops and high population venues and events as an inconvenience.


better to understate so as not to cause panic,keep calm and carry on washing those hands


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## Amity Island (Feb 28, 2020)

atoll said:


> better to understate so as not to cause panic,keep calm and carry on washing those hands


"20 times more deadly(cfr2.0%) so has the potential to kill 12.8 million yearly if unchecked".
Do you mean that quote was understated to avoid panic? What is the actual figure?


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## Eddy Edson (Feb 28, 2020)

Amity Island said:


> "20 times more deadly(cfr2.0%) so has the potential to kill 12.8 million yearly if unchecked".
> Do you mean that quote was understated to avoid panic? What is the actual figure?



The CFR in China has very quickly reduced to 0.7% for cases identified from 1st Feb:


It's being contained very successfully, so far, with reported cases falling dramatically from 2,700 per day early on, to ~300 per day now (in a population of 1.4 billion+ ...). Outside of Hubei province, there's just a handful per day. This despite potential to spread "astonishingly quickly" (WHO's words).

The WHO says the success is due to China's fast & comprehensive effort to identify, diagnose, track contacts and isolate/quarantine.

Without that kind of effort, "seven times more deadly than flu" might be about right, or an underestimate, given that this thing appears to spread more rapidly if uncontrolled. With the right effort, public health impacts likely very small, but obviosuly a lot of disruption.


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## atoll (Feb 29, 2020)

lets hope so,a  CFR of 0.7 brings the virus into the realms of equal to what respiratory  disease already kills yearly,so effectively doubling it to about 10 m per year,https://ourworldindata.org/causes-of-death.
not so good is the WHO just announced this~

*WHO raises Global Risk from Coronavirus to the highest level of alert *“_We have now increased our assessment of the risk of spread and the risk of impact of COVID-19 to *very high at global level*_,” World Health Organization chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told reporters. 

 “*If we don’t take action... that may be a future that we have to experience*,” he said, adding that _“*a lot of the future of this epidemic is in the hands of ourselves*_.”
source https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/


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## atoll (Feb 29, 2020)

Amity Island said:


> "20 times more deadly(cfr2.0%) so has the potential to kill 12.8 million yearly if unchecked".
> Do you mean that quote was understated to avoid panic? What is the actual figure?


there is no figure, we will not know until the last case is eradicated,though using the CFR of( 0.7) covid against the known CFR of flu (0.1) and know yearly cases of 640k the extrapolation is 4.48 million yearly if it becomes endemic,ie no cure.


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## grovesy (Feb 29, 2020)

Some people can't afford not to work.


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## atoll (Feb 29, 2020)

grovesy said:


> Some people can't afford not to work.


hopefully your government has a plan for you,expect major changes from monday onwards.


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## grovesy (Feb 29, 2020)

atoll said:


> hopefully your government has a plan for you,expect major changes from monday onwards.


I do not work, so it does not affect me. I was speaking about many cant . Unfortunately our government have not got a good track record on this type of thing.


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## atoll (Feb 29, 2020)

grovesy said:


> I do not work, so it does not affect me. I was speaking about many cant . Unfortunately our government have not got a good track record on this type of thing.


 we have an army that can step in ,although the governments plan will no doubt rely on a high degree of public cooperation.
meanwhile stockmarkets are not looking good,but the leader of the free world has suggested that a miracle might happen.

in the short term getting some extra provisions in would be my advice,those MRE meals that have been in storage since the cold war that the army might be handing out,will keep people alive ,but hardly jamie oliver.


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## grovesy (Feb 29, 2020)

Thanks for the advice but I have not got a clue what MRE meals are. I doubt we have enough troops to go around to cover everything people wish them to do.


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## Stitch147 (Feb 29, 2020)

Tee G said:


> I dont think i like the thought of an aeroplane with this 'flying' around at the mo - pun intended  ...... My friend is due to go an a cruise in May!! (her first, ooops)  she has been sent an email saying checks will be carried out each time they embark i.e. at every stop on the tour - can you imagine if you get carted off because they 'suspect' something is awry.  Rather her than me!  Good luck with that one !


I'm due to fly to the Canary Islands on Thursday and I'm not worried at all.


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## atoll (Feb 29, 2020)

grovesy said:


> Thanks for the advice but I have not got a clue what MRE meals are. I doubt we have enough troops to go around to cover everything people wish them to do.


MRE= meals ready to eat, this is what the armed forces eat whilst on exercises or in combat.

somewhere in  underground bunkers in strategic locations around the uk there are depots of supplies,biochem,medical,nuclear decontamination kits etc,along with enough of these MRE to keep the whole country going for a few months in the event of a pandemic or nuclear/bio attack.


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## Maz2 (Feb 29, 2020)

Stitch147 said:


> I'm due to fly to the Canary Islands on Thursday and I'm not worried at all.


Glad to hear that Stitch.  I am getting extremely fed up with the media going on and on and on the whole time about a new case here and new case there.  They are causing problems frightening everybody.

My husband works in the public sector and their CEO is having constant updates from PHE.  The media keep on about 19 cases (yesterday 28.2.2020) but 11 of those have fully recovered.  That leaves 8 which is 8 too many,of course.  The media don't bother to tell you about those who have fully recovered or had mild symptoms or none at all. They just keep on about those who die.  

My apologies for the rant.  I appreciate not everyone will agree but I am sick and tired on the British media  in general, not just over this. 

I have faith in the Government to do the best they can with this.  Hope it goes away soon.  

My friend is due to go to Tenerife on 22nd March and Foreign Office is saying it is OK to go so I said to her it is best to do what they say.  They are advising at present not to go to Northern Italy where they have the towns and villages in lockdown.


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## atoll (Feb 29, 2020)

Stitch147 said:


> I'm due to fly to the Canary Islands on Thursday and I'm not worried at all.


have a nice time,and be sure to purchase some travel insurance,the canary islands still accepts the EHIC card until october,but you may have to pay up front for any treatment if you don't have private insurance.

private insurance should also cover you  for about 2 million if you need medical evacuation or flight and hotel cancellation.
be prepared to self isolate if asked to by authorities on your return, should you find yourself in one of the daily growing number of covid clusters in europe.

take enough meds to cover your holiday and enough for a period of quarantine,just in case!
probably also a good idea also to have some spare water and food in your room from when you arrive in case of hotel lock down .


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## Maz2 (Feb 29, 2020)

Always have insurance as the European card not enough. I have always had both


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## GJG99 (Mar 1, 2020)

It's difficult to know which way to jump on this, as a type 1 over 60 I cant deny I am worried, I do find the news alarmist. It seems to me the Chinese way of strangling the spread works (if you believe the figures) but that wouldn't work here. I wish we could get more information on the progress of a vaccine, I keep reading different data.


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## AndBreathe (Mar 1, 2020)

I thought this was a very interesting article in today's Spectator 









						Coronavirus and the cycle of panic | The Spectator
					

It is the latest phenomenon to fulfil our weird and growing appetite for doom




					www.spectator.co.uk


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## Eddy Edson (Mar 1, 2020)

AndBreathe said:


> I thought this was a very interesting article in today's Spectator
> 
> 
> 
> ...



He's just a journalist, so you can't expect much, but what he doesn't seem to know is how fast this thing can spread if it's not controlled.

Eg: Reported cases increased more than 8-fold just over February in Hubei. Of course there was no doubt some catch-up with identifying previously infected people included in that, but nevertheless the WHO calls it "astonishingly" fast. 

It's an exponential curve, and you could easily have a several hundred fold increase in just a few months if it weren't controlled.

Suggesting that it's just a beat-up and that if we just ignored it we wouldn't notice anything more than normal winter ailments etc etc is Trump-level cluelessness.


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## Stitch147 (Mar 1, 2020)

atoll said:


> have a nice time,and be sure to purchase some travel insurance,the canary islands still accepts the EHIC card until october,but you may have to pay up front for any treatment if you don't have private insurance.
> 
> private insurance should also cover you  for about 2 million if you need medical evacuation or flight and hotel cancellation.
> be prepared to self isolate if asked to by authorities on your return, should you find yourself in one of the daily growing number of covid clusters in europe.
> ...


I have travel insurance, always do. Taking enough meds for a month (I'm there for 10 days) I always do. Won't be stock piling water or food, no need too.


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## atoll (Mar 1, 2020)

Stitch147 said:


> I have travel insurance, always do. Taking enough meds for a month (I'm there for 10 days) I always do. Won't be stock piling water or food, no need too.


I was not suggesting stockpiling,just have enough on hand to get you through 24-48 hrs should you suddenly be confined to your room.


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## Felinia (Mar 1, 2020)

I have cancelled my holiday in April.  I understand that as a 69 year old diabetic with compromised immune system and multiple other medical issues, I am considered high risk.  The BBC travel expert Simon Calder says the greatest danger is actually the airport terminals, then the planes and finally the destination (excluding those already notified about).  On my last 2 plane trips I picked up viruses which each wiped me out for a month.  I thought long and hard about it, but I'm not prepared to risk it.  Had I not done so this week, I would have lost virtually all my money.  As it is I've lost almost £1000.


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## atoll (Mar 1, 2020)

AndBreathe said:


> I thought this was a very interesting article in today's Spectator
> 
> 
> 
> ...


had china not put 5% of the worlds population in isolation,and is still using extremely stringent disease control measures.
 i feel that he would be writing a completley different type of article , possibly questioning the governments ability to cope with all the bodies piling up outside A+E from a new and deadly type of pneumonia that our scientists are very worried about.

lets hope the journalist is right,and it is just a fad and the WHO have got it wrong.


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## grovesy (Mar 1, 2020)

atoll said:


> had china not put 5% of the worlds population in isolation,and is still using extremely stringent disease control measures.
> i feel that he would be writing a completley different type of article , possibly questioning the governments ability to cope with all the bodies piling up outside A+E from a new and deadly type of pneumonia that our scientists are very worried about.
> 
> lets hope the journalist is right,and it is just a fad and the WHO have got it wrong.


Well the pictures I have seen of the beds in the Chinese hospitals, are very close.


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## atoll (Mar 1, 2020)

grovesy said:


> Well the pictures I have seen of the beds in the Chinese hospitals, are very close.


That is what happens when the whole ward /area / floor/ hospital /stadium becomes a quarantine zone for those already infected.
Remember for every 100 infected you need aprox 20 hospital beds if you want to keep the CFR low.
Being able to scale up response and resources very quickly if numbers double exponentially every 24hrs will have a direct impact on CFR.


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## Maz2 (Mar 1, 2020)

AndBreathe said:


> I thought this was a very interesting article in today's Spectator
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Inclined to agree with him.  If every case of seasonal flu was reported no-one would go anywhere as it is very frightening.  Seasonal flu kills a lot of people but the media don't tell you which is a good thing I suppose.  They don't appear to be bothering telling you about the people who are recovering which is most of them. However, I suppose if they did not it would not upset everybody would it. 

I am not denying it is a serious illness but so is seasonal flu and also the common cold can be in very vulnerable people depending on the strain and how badly it affects you.


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## Maz2 (Mar 1, 2020)

I am taking Foreign Office advice and if they say it is OK to go somewhere I will; if they say it is not then I won't.

Cunard emailed us to say they have cancelled all the cruises to the Far East for Spring and are taking them to Australia and New Zealand instead.  That seems sensible at the present time to me.


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## atoll (Mar 1, 2020)

Maz2 said:


> Inclined to agree with him.  If every case of seasonal flu was reported no-one would go anywhere as it is very frightening.  Seasonal flu kills a lot of people but the media don't tell you which is a good thing I suppose.  They don't appear to be bothering telling you about the people who are recovering which is most of them. However, I suppose if they did not it would not upset everybody would it.
> 
> I am not denying it is a serious illness but so is seasonal flu and also the common cold can be in very vulnerable people depending on the strain and how badly it affects you.


seasonal flu statistically only requires hospitalization in 0.2% of cases.
covid 19 requires hospitalization in 19% of cases,6% of those cases will require intensive care.
Ro for flu ~ 1.2 to 1.6
Ro for covid ~1.4 to 3.8


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## Maz2 (Mar 1, 2020)

I thought they were hospitalising everyone with it so that they can be dealt with in isolation and not spread it to other people.


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## grovesy (Mar 1, 2020)

The people who came back from abroad to be quarantined were not in hospitals, they were in a hotel and hospital staff accommodation.


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## GJG99 (Mar 1, 2020)

Due to fly to Lake Garda in June for 10 days, remainder of cost due to be paid this week so I'm in a Do I, Dont I situation, probably will pay it because I think Government advice by then will be not to travel


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## Maz2 (Mar 1, 2020)

GJG99 said:


> Due to fly to Lake Garda in June for 10 days, remainder of cost due to be paid this week so I'm in a Do I, Dont I situation, probably will pay it because I think Government advice by then will be not to travel


I am not certain of my facts but I suspect Lake Garda may be in the problem area as it is in north Italy.  The Foreign Office will advise.  They are advising staying away from certain places in northern Italy until the authorities have stopped the spread.  Lake Garda is not mentioned but it may be worth checking.  The travel agent should also know.

If you go against Foreign Office advice you would have to check with your holiday insurance that they were happy to cover you.  I have heard that holiday insurance companies may not cover people who against FO advice.  

By June hopefully it may have been sorted - that is still three months away.  My friend is going to Tenerife in 3 weeks and the FO at present have not advised against it.


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## Maz2 (Mar 1, 2020)

Just another thought.  If you have booked through a holiday company they would be able to rebook it for a later date if there was a problem still in June.  Then you don't lose your money and, in any case, insurance companies would be expected to pay up if Foreign Office advise against travel.  They can advise for other reasons too like terrorism or unrest but, in this case, not relevant.


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## grovesy (Mar 1, 2020)

I saw a woman on Rip off Britain and she cancelled her holiday to Hong Kong because of the riots, and her insurance would not pay up, as the Foreign Office had not issued a no go notice.


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## Felinia (Mar 2, 2020)

grovesy said:


> I saw a woman on Rip off Britain and she cancelled her holiday to Hong Kong because of the riots, and her insurance would not pay up, as the Foreign Office had not issued a no go notice.


Yes I am having to pay the cancellation fee for my holiday, because my destination, although it has cases of coronavirus, is not listed an "no go", and I do not have a medical certificate, even though I am considered high risk - it is only "advice".  Having twice picked up bugs from the airport or plane journeys, I put my health over money.


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## grovesy (Mar 2, 2020)

We all have to do what is best for us as individuals.


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## Josh DUK (Mar 4, 2020)

The Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, Matt Hancock has launched an expanded public health awareness campaign on COVID-19 (Coronavirus).



It urges people to wash their hands more often for 20 seconds.  You can find their campaign on their social media channels below.

Twitter: 



__ https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1235096386506350592


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## atoll (Mar 4, 2020)

great advice if we are in any way going to try to delay the virus from affecting us all, at the same time.

Those that can should also immediately start reducing social contact as per NHS instructions ie  no touching , social distancing ,isolation and avoiding all but essential travel.
human to human transmission is the prime vector, as well as surfaces in public pedestrian high traffic areas.


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## atoll (Mar 4, 2020)

Those that are traveling on holiday over the next few months should now be thinking along the lines of :-
" if I get hospitalised will the country in which I will be in have a health service capable of coping with a large influx of new cases of medium to severe respiratory infections?"


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## GJG99 (Mar 5, 2020)

atoll said:


> Those that are traveling on holiday over the next few months should now be thinking along the lines of :-
> " if I get hospitalised will the country in which I will be in have a health service capable of coping with a large influx of new cases of medium to severe respiratory infections?"


I think the other considerations are who is paying for this and IF I do catch it do I really want to be away from home? Also, you are probably going to take more medication with you just in case.


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## Maz2 (Mar 5, 2020)

Think you are just as likely to get it  here as abroad.  We are going to France unless Foreign Office say we cannot or French Government say we cannot.  We could contract the virus there, here or not at all.  

I heard of a couple who were going to Cyprus. Wife went, husband refused to go due to Coronavirus.  Now there is an outbreak in the area he lives in the UK.


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## Maz2 (Mar 5, 2020)

Most  health systems in western Europe are as good as here, some are better like France, Germany, Switzerland, Scandi countries.


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