We can avoid deaths from the latest coronavirus outbreak by following recommended best practices.
COVID-19 Updates
The Patient Safety Movement Foundation will post regular COVID-19 updates to the YouTube Playlist below. Click on the “Playlist” icon (
) on the top right of the video below to view the full playlist.
Resources
On this page, you will find the answers to some frequently asked questions, as well as links to several helpful resources.
For The General Public
There is so much information on the news and in social media; who should I believe? Don’t believe everything you read, see, or hear. There is currently a lot of misleading information being shared among the public. In times of an outbreak, there are two sources of truth: The World Health Organization, and the government organization that applies the WHO recommendations in your country. Here are just a few:
There is so much information on the news and in social media; who should I believe? Don’t believe everything you read, see, or hear. There is currently a lot of misleading information being shared among the public. In times of an outbreak, there are two sources of truth: The World Health Organization, and the government organization that applies the WHO recommendations in your country. Here are just a few:
- The World Health Organization
- The U.S. Centers for Disease Control
- The UK Department of Health & Social Care
- Taiwan Centers for Disease Control
- CDC Global Health
What is the latest update on the incidence and spread of the coronavirus? Here are a few routinely updated sites that show the latest statistics:
Map courtesy of Johns Hopkins University
What is the best way to keep myself and my loved ones safe? Right now, because humans do not have immunity to the coronavirus, there is a risk both to individuals and to society as a whole. Everyone should minimize contact with others to prevent spreading the disease faster than we can safely manage. Healthcare workers are overwhelmed in some parts of the world, and are quickly becoming so in others, so it is critical that everyone across the globe stay at home as much as possible, and if you have to go out, don’t touch your face or eat in public unless you wash your hands first. Wash your hands again as soon as you get home, and sanitize anything you touched along the way. While you are at home, wash your hands and clean your house more frequently than normal. How severe the restrictions in your area are depends upon how severe the threat of outbreak is in your community. Contact your local health agency for details about what specific precautions you should take. Here are some great resources:
Family involvement in a loved one’s care: Although visitors are restricted in many hospitals due to the current situation, family involvement in their loved one’s care is just as essential to ensure continuity of care and care coordination. The resources below can be used to coordinate your loved one’s care from any location while visitor restrictions are in place:
- PSMF’s Guide to Medical Care at a Distance
- PSMF’s Point of Care Blank Template
- PSMF’s Point of Care Example Template
How do I know if I am washing my hands correctly? The best way to wash your hands is with soap and hot water for at least 20 seconds. If you don’t have access to soap and water, you can use hand sanitizer. Most people do not wash their hands correctly. Here are some resources that can help:
- WHO How to Handwash with Soap and Water
- CDC: Washing with Soap and Water
- CDC: Proper Use of Hand Sanitizer
How do I know if I am more at risk than others? COVID-19 tends to be much more severe in older adults and in those with compromised immune systems. However, younger people are also developing serious illness. There does not appear to be a higher risk for pregnant or breastfeeding women, but we are still learning about this disease. You can stay updated through these links:
- CDC: Pregnancy and Breastfeeding
- COVID-19: What Older Adults Need to Know
- CDC: Are You at Higher Risk for Severe Illness?
For Hospitals and Healthcare Facilities
What do healthcare leaders need to do to keep themselves, their families, and their patients safe? Anyone who works in a hospital or healthcare facility should follow the same standard guidelines as the general public. In addition, be sure to wash your hands when you arrive and when you leave your facility every day so that you do not bring germs in to vulnerable people, or bring them from infected patients to your family. Ensure that the WHO and your CDC are the source of truth for ongoing improvement in coronavirus management.
How can healthcare organizations improve infection control practices quickly if a gap in best practice is identified? There is no need to recreate the wheel: feel free to download and modify the Kaiser Permanente playbook linked here: