Coronavirus: UK taking precautions and measures against Corona virus

1. Coronavirus: How is UK coping with Corona Virus |SM2UK There have been 319 confirmed cases of coronavirus in the UK with four deaths as of March 9, 2020, with the UK’s Chief Medical Officer Chris Whitty stating that an epidemic in the country was now “highlylikely.” The UK government’s action plan has four stages: contain, delay, research andmitigate. UK is now in stage 2 –contain According to the reports the govt. is considering population distancing strategies which could include school closures, tele commuting for the work force (for at least 3 months) and also reducing the number of large scale gatherings. The last measure being deemed important as the UK is seeing rising number of cases of ‘community spread’ i.e. patients with no known exposure to the virus or travel histories to countries where outbreaks have beenreported. Even more radical measures being considered include closing the Parliament for up to 5 months amid fears that Members of Parliament could become“super-spreaders.” According to Public Health England’s medical director, Prof Yvonne Doyle, said that washing hands with soap and water is more effective than wearing a face mask, although face masks are important for staff to use in hospitals when dealing with suspectedcases. She urged anyone who has entered the UK from Wuhan and who has fallen ill with a fever, cough or difficulty breathing to contact NHS111. In addition, the government has introduced advanced monitoring at airports for those getting off direct flights from the likes of South Korea and Malaysia, including Heathrow – where doctors and PHE personnel are stationed in immigrationhalls. According to the Department of Health and Social Care, more than 23,500 people have been tested for the virus in the UK, of which 319 have been diagnosed with Covid-19 as of March9. Information in this article is for information only; readers can get more information fromgov.uk.