What can I do about COVID-19?

My name is Gordon Doig and I am an epidemiologist who has worked in critical care for more than 20 years. I live in Sydney, NSW, Australia. Like you, I have tried to keep up to date on the novel coronavirus outbreak (COVID-19) that started in Wuhan, China. Because I don't see a lot of truly useful information coming from the mainstream media, I have been going directly to credible sources like the World Health Organisation. The purpose of this page is to describe in plain language what the WHO recommends and to provide links to WHO content so you can understand exactly what they are saying.

Interactive graphs: World HotSpots, US HotSpots and World Map

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Immunity

On 24 April the WHO released a brief statement on immunity to COVID-19. Please read the complete document. Below is only a brief summary:

When you get an infection, your immune system develops antibodies to fight the infection and help you recover.

  • Usually, these antibodies stay around in your blood to stop you from getting the same infection a second time.

    • For example, if you have chikenpox as a child, most people develop antibodies to chickenpox that protects them from ever getting chickenpox again.

The good news is, blood tests can measure antibodies to COVID-19 in people who have recovered from COVID-19.

  • However, COVID-19 is a new disease and there is not enough evidence to know how long these antibodies last and how protective they are.

Because we don't know how protective these COVID-19 antibodies are, the WHO recommends that people who have recovered from COVID-19 should not ignore preventive public health advice.

  • People who have recovered from COVID-19 must: 1) maintain social distancing (1 to 1.5m from all strangers), 2) do not touch your face when you are in public or at work, 3) wash your hands frequently, 4) practice good respiratory hygiene and 5) follow any other public health advice issued by your government.


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Any questions or comments please contact Gordon.Doig@EvidenceBased.net
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Page last modified on Thursday 30 April 2020.