Wednesday, March 11, 2020

Don't Stand So Close To Me: "Social Distancing During the 1918 Influenza Pandemic and Lessons for Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19)"

From The Microbial Menagerie, March 8:

chart comparing number of influenza cases in Philadelphia versus St. Loius in 1918
As COVID-19 spreads around the world, more and more things such as conferences, schools, and large events such as SXSW are being canceled – an effort to halt the spread of the virus and reduce the strain on our healthcare system. Meanwhile, dangerous notions circulate: the idea that nearly everyone will get COVID-19 so distancing measures are irrelevant or the idea that we might as well just get it and be done with it (for example, from Rick Santelli on CNBC).


In the last few days, different versions of a simple, yet powerful, graph show us why it’s worth trying to keep the number of cases low. The takeaway: protective measures, such as self-isolation and canceling large gatherings, will delay and decrease the outbreak peak, reduce the burden on hospitals at a given time, and decrease the overall number of cases.

But do social distancing measures actually work?....
....MUCH MORE

From The Police: