Schools are closing. Events are canceled. Travel is restricted. Countries are on lockdown. In the wake of the recent COVID-19 (also known as Coronavirus) outbreak, the mainstream media has induced mass hysteria both nationally and globally, causing worldwide panic across all aspects of life from the economy to private lives. Union residents have most likely already heard something about this virus, and some may already be in a state of panic. Despite what most of the mainstream media seems to claim, panic solves no problems, and Union residents should not panic over the COVID-19.
Although many people use the terms Coronavirus and COVID-19 interchangeably, these two terms do not mean the same thing. According to the World Health Organization, “Coronaviruses (CoV) are a large family of viruses that cause illness ranging from the common cold to more severe diseases such as Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS-CoV) and Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS-CoV).” Coronaviruses cause many different illnesses, and many of these illnesses are mild. COVID-19 is the new strain that originated in Wuhan, China. The World Health Organization lists many mild symptoms to show this: “respiratory symptoms, fever, cough, shortness of breath and breathing difficulties.” These symptoms also carry a great deal of ambiguity and sometimes do not require a doctor visit; they are also the symptoms for many other diseases as well—influenza and the common cold. These symptoms are common for many different diseases. In more severe cases, however, they can cause “pneumonia, severe acute respiratory syndrome, kidney failure, and even death” (W.H.O.) Although severity is possibly, this is also true of any illness. In order to prevent infection, everyone should wash their hands and practice basic hygiene habits (which everyone should be doing all of the time anyway) instead of stocking up on toilet paper.
As with any other illness, young, healthy adults, teenagers, and children have done extremely well against COVID-19; all cases have been fairly mild for this demographic. According to study by the Chinese Centers for Disease Control, the elderly and those with preexisting health conditions are the most at risk for a severe infection of COVID-19, which is also true of any other illness. Influenza and even the common cold can be extremely dangerous to these demographics, and they must exercise all sanitary precautions they use to prepare for other diseases. Furthermore, although the Johns Hopkins University Center for Science and Engineering reports that COVID-19 has infected 127,000 globally (with a majority in China), around 4700 have died so far, and at least 60,000 people have recovered from COVID-19. Mississippi currently only has one confirmed case of COVID-19 in Forrest County, Mississippi. As of this writing, on Mississippi’s borders, Tennessee, Arkansas, and Louisiana all have confirmed cases, but Alabama does not. Union also has no cases of COVID-19 as of this writing. In order to prevent the spread of the virus, all Mississippi universities have extended spring break and moved classes online (which will definitely cause students some issues).
With all of the different media outlets inducing mass hysteria, the facts can sometimes get lost. COVID-19 definitely deserves attention, concern, and preparation. The world’s governments should continue researching and implementing preventive measures to combat the spread of the virus, and people should do this as well. However, preparation does not mean to panic and buy all the toilet paper in Walmart. Everyone should wash their hands, practice basic hygiene skills, and use common sense around sick people. Everyone should always research the facts (from sources like the Centers of Disease Control, The Mississippi Department of Public Health, and Johns Hopkins University) instead of listening to hysterical news reports. Panic solves no problems, and Union residents should not fall into this trap.
