bigDog
Elder Lister
We still need to contain this virus before it damages our society further. People are imagining we can fully open up the economy without first bringing down the numbers of infected people. Let me borrow a few figures
1. At 202 dead out of 10,000 infections, we have a 0.02 death rate compared to the global rate of around 0.04. We have a younger population but deaths are still deaths. We had relative capacity to deal with 10,000 infections.
2. People recovering from covid-19 disease have been shown to experience strokes, lung and heart damage as well as neurological damage. Think of the long term effect this will have on our health sector especially costs.
3. Asymptomatic patients may suffer long term damage to their lungs though they might not notice it.
4. We do not have capacity to treat people who are infected. Isolation wards and ICU facilities at KU, AGUH, Kenyatta Hosi and Nairobi hospital are full. Critical care covid-19 patients are made to wait until the next ICU space is available via death or recovery. If you don't get space, you die (12 cases yesterday).
5. Because of corruption, our critical health care professionals are expected to report for duty without proper PPE. They do have have families. If I were one of them I would choose my life over yours. No health worker is going to risk their life because of yours.
What's my point?
a) We.will have increased spread and mortality once this disease spreads (as it is) in the rural areas and poor urban neighborhoods.
b) We have a very large number of people living with hypertension, diabetes, HIV (some with a combination of several of those) . Many of these people are in their middle ages or older. Expect major economic disruptions when they die.
c) In community health, you are as healthy as your next neighbour. If your neighbour takes a dump upstream, you suffer the shit and worms. Why can't we stop the neighbour from shitting upstream?
Why can't we create enforceable laws coupled with public education to make our society safer?
1. At 202 dead out of 10,000 infections, we have a 0.02 death rate compared to the global rate of around 0.04. We have a younger population but deaths are still deaths. We had relative capacity to deal with 10,000 infections.
2. People recovering from covid-19 disease have been shown to experience strokes, lung and heart damage as well as neurological damage. Think of the long term effect this will have on our health sector especially costs.
3. Asymptomatic patients may suffer long term damage to their lungs though they might not notice it.
4. We do not have capacity to treat people who are infected. Isolation wards and ICU facilities at KU, AGUH, Kenyatta Hosi and Nairobi hospital are full. Critical care covid-19 patients are made to wait until the next ICU space is available via death or recovery. If you don't get space, you die (12 cases yesterday).
5. Because of corruption, our critical health care professionals are expected to report for duty without proper PPE. They do have have families. If I were one of them I would choose my life over yours. No health worker is going to risk their life because of yours.
What's my point?
a) We.will have increased spread and mortality once this disease spreads (as it is) in the rural areas and poor urban neighborhoods.
b) We have a very large number of people living with hypertension, diabetes, HIV (some with a combination of several of those) . Many of these people are in their middle ages or older. Expect major economic disruptions when they die.
c) In community health, you are as healthy as your next neighbour. If your neighbour takes a dump upstream, you suffer the shit and worms. Why can't we stop the neighbour from shitting upstream?
Why can't we create enforceable laws coupled with public education to make our society safer?
people like Mr 
