Health experts say COVID 19 is here to stay. Dr. Wendell Hoffman is an Infectious Disease Specialist with Sanford Health. He says that it will become one of several viruses physicians will test for. He says there are short term and long-term preparations that need to be in place for the coronavirus as well as the flu and common cold. He says the public can be confident the health care systems are prepared.
“It’s not like you’re going to have a hundred thousand cases of COVID present at one time. This is a rolling process of cases that are beginning to appear, and our healthcare systems are extraordinarily sophisticated," says Hoffman. "We have detailed triage planning to be able to handle a lot of patients if they were to present at once. But it’s not like a big mass casualty where you have a hundred people presenting to your ER with the same thing that demands the same approach."
Hoffman says to stop the rapid spread of the virus people should wash their hands, have regular cleaning habits and consider social distancing. He says any therapeutics and vaccines are months away from the trial stages.