Traveling can spark fears over germs at the best of times. But, taking a trip during a major outbreak undoubtedly adds new gravitas to concerns, especially during something as serious as a pandemic.
You may find yourself asking questions like “Should I cancel my flight?”, “How can I stay safe?” and “Where can I get reliable information?”
While minimizing travel may be ideal, it’s not always possible. So, here are a few important tips for traveling to a region in the middle of a viral outbreak:
On March 11, the World Health Organization announced that coronavirus (COVID-19) is officially a pandemic.
For months, countries around the world had already been taking action against the virus. Increased cases led to mass quarantines and more testing.
But, the decision from the WHO is rare, even for a disease that’s spread worldwide. The world’s last official pandemic was in 2009, caused by the H1N1 swine flu.
With the entire globe now working to slow the COVID-19 pandemic, what does that term mean?
Before a deadly pandemic spreads across the globe, it starts small. The seemingly harmless cases can then slowly grow into global catastrophes. That journey has now been clarified with a new report from the John Hopkins Center for Health Security.
When considering what makes a disease a possible pandemic, there are no hard and fast guidelines. Instead, scientists typically look to the past to see historical examples of outbreaks showing effective responses to similar events.
But, this means we are always looking behind instead of properly evaluating serious pathogens with which we lack experience. Research, led by senior scholar Amesh Adalja, MD, has been put into “The Characteristics of Pandemic Pathogens” and aims to change this.
So often in everyday conversations, you hear the words “virus” and “bacteria” used interchangeably, but they’re not the same thing.
In fact, it’s important to know the difference between the two because treatment and prevention differ for each. It’s key to recognize these differences and know if something is a virus or a disease.
Is it okay to travel if I feel sick? Many people are asking this question, or if they should be traveling at all due to the recent global outbreak of coronavirus (COVID-19).
Depending on who you ask, people are going to have different opinions on this question. Although, the real answer depends on how sick you are.
Although it’s not ideal to travel while sick, sometimes you have to. Maybe you have to get home or need to hope on a plane for work. Or you can’t get a refund for a trip and simply can’t afford not to go.
Whatever the reason, most people like to try and travel, even if they’re not feeling the best. But is this safe?
