An excerpt from the above long article:
Who should follow our suggested social isolation measures? EVERYONE. If you do not need to go out for a mission-critical purpose, do not. You WILL be saving the lives of at-risk members of your own family, as well as people you will never have the pleasure of meeting.
All of you can save lives starting now.
The actions you take starting today will save the lives of people you will never meet.
Support the #CancelEverything and #SocialDistancingWorks movements.
Mitigation measures for COVID-19
Support your schools’ decisions to close: Proactive school closings save more lives than reactive school closings. Your schools should close now … before infections are present. Closed schools do not mean playdates for children – this counteracts the social distancing the school closures are meant to create in the first place.
6 feet: The COVID-19 virus spreads through droplets. They can move 6 feet before gravity brings them to earth. Stay 6 feet away from people if you need to go outside.
Meticulous hand washing: Wash thoroughly and wash often. Alcohol-based hand sanitizer works well if your hands are otherwise clean.
Do not touch your face. This is hard. This is a learned skill: Practice often.
Clean doorknobs, toilets, cellphones, countertops, refrigerator handles, and so on many times each day.
The virus could live on certain surfaces for 4-72 hours.
If you can work from home, work from home.
No tournaments, no sports events, no soccer, baseball, dance, volleyball, softball, gymnastics, concerts, martial arts, etc. We don’t care how much they claim they will clean the equipment.
Cancel vacation travel. We know you planned this for a long time. You will be saving many lives by doing so … perhaps someone you know.
Cancel weddings/ bar/bat mitzvahs, birthday parties, and so on. Help other people live so they can celebrate future events too.
If you are over 60 years old, you should stay home. You should only go out if there is a critical need.
If you have parents/grandparents in a nursing home, you should consider moving them home for now.
Do not congregate in a restaurant, bar, etc. Again, you will save the lives of people you will never meet.
If you feel sick, stay home. It doesn’t matter if you don’t feel too sick. Going to work will put countless other people at risk of suffering or dying.
Cancel all business travel. Your life and the lives of others are more important.
Expect supply chain issues: Work with your doctor to try to get a three month supply of medication.
Many grocery stores have order ahead options with either pick up or delivery. There are online grocery delivery services available in many areas. Wash your hands thoroughly after unpacking groceries.
Howard J. Luks (@hjluks) is an orthopedic surgeon. Joel Topf (@Kidney_Boy) is a nephrologist. Ethan J. Weiss (@ethanjweiss) is a cardiologist. Wendy Sue Swanson (@WendySueSwanson) is a pediatrician. Bryan Vartabedian (@Doctor_V) is a pediatric gastroenterologist. Carrie Diulus (@Cadiulus) is an orthopedic surgeon. Nancy Yen Shipley (@_NancyMD) is an orthopedic surgeon. Eric Levi (@DrEricLevi) is an otolaryngologist.