Health Information During a Time of Stress

The following article is a summary of what was written by Camila Domonoske on WAMC.org and originally published  on Aug 24, 2020.   (Source:  https://www.wamc.org/post/we-return-work-and-school-during-pandemic-can-air-inside-be-kept-safe ) Across America, buildings are opening back up — offices, schools, theaters, stores, restaurants — even as evidence mounts that the coronavirus circulates through the air we breathe. This means that building owners should be asking  what they can do to make sure that  their  building doesn't spread the virus.                                                                          T here are ways to reduce the risk, and e xperts warn building managers to be cautious of anyone selling them any air-purifying device or super-strong filter ...

Herd immunity (or community immunity) occurs when a high percentage of the community is immune to a disease (through vaccination and/or prior illness), making the spread of this disease from person to person unlikely. Even individuals not vaccinated (such as newborns and the immunocompromised) are offered some protection because the disease has little opportunity to spread within the community. Vaccines prevent many dangerous and deadly diseases. In the United States, smallpox and polio have both been stamped out because of vaccination. However, there are certain groups of people who cannot get vaccinated and are vulnerable to disease:  babies,  pregnant women,  and immunocompromised people, such as those receiving chemotherapy or organ transplants.  For example, the earliest a baby can receive their first pertussis or whooping cough vaccine is at two months, and the earliest a child can receive their first measles vaccine is at one year, making them vulnerable to th...