52 Ancestors – 52 Weeks

Here we are at Week 22. The writing prompt for this week is Uncertain. Genealogists often remind those of us researching our ancestry to include stories about current times for those who will come behind us. Therefore, this week I am choosing to write about a pandemic that is affecting residents of planet earth currently.

In December 2019, a novel coronavirus was identified in Wuhan, China. It was named Covid-19. Coronaviruses are members of the coronavirus family of viruses — one of the many families that include viruses able to infect people and animals. Seven members of the coronavirus family can make people ill, one of which is the new coronavirus strain SARS-CoV-2, which causes COVID-19. The -19 in the name signifies that the virus was confirmed in 2019. (medicinenet.com)

Covid-19, defined as “a mild to severe respiratory illness that is caused by a coronavirus (Severe acute Whesyndrome coronavirus 2 of the genus Betacoronavirus), is transmitted chiefly by contact with infectious material (such as respiratory droplets) or with objects or surfaces contaminated by the causative virus, and is characterized especially by fever, cough, and shortness of breath and may progress to pneumonia and respiratory failure.” (medicinenet.com)

To date, (6/8/2020) two hundred thirteen countries and territories around the world have reported a total of 7,081,590 confirmed cases of the coronavirus  COVID-19 a death toll of 405,074. (Worldometer.info) The numbers are staggering and continue to rise daily at a reduced rate.

Information from the World Health Organization (WHO) and the United States Center for Disease Control (CDC) recommends the following guidelines to prevent humans from coming down with the virus.

• STAY HOME.
• SAVE LIVES.
• Help stop coronavirus:
• 1 STAY home as much as you can (self-quarantine)
• 2 KEEP a safe distance (“social” distancing of 6′)
• 3 WASH hands often (for at least 20 seconds each time)
• 4 COVER your cough
• 5 SICK? Call ahead (Call medical facility for advice before going there)

After the five guidelines above were instituted, we were advised to wear a facial mask whenever we were in the company of other persons. Some organizations required facial masks for entry.

I live in Madison, Dane County, Wisconsin. Today, the total number of covid-19 cases in Wisconsin is 20,835, with 647 total deaths. The state placed its residents under a mandatory quarantine from March 17 to May 26, 2020. However on May 13, 2020 the Wisconsin Supreme Court struck down the quarantine effective immediately. We are advised to keep practicing the recommended guidelines set for by the state and CDC.

While the quarantine was in effect all schools closed; only “essential” employees were required to work; those who could, worked from home; most businesses were required to close; daycare centers closed; clinic visits became “televisits”; health clubs and gyms closed; grocery stores ran out of necessities and were forced to put limits on the number of certain items that can be purchased at one time; planes were grounded, international travel was halted; gas prices plummeted; stocks crashed and the stock market was closed for a couple of weeks. Life as we knew it vanished.

Now, by observation, it is apparent that state residents are tired of the isolation and are pretty much out and about as before the virus struck. The virus continues present in the U.S. The Wisconsin Department of Health Services (DHS) continues to recommend social distancing of at least six feet and the wearing of a facial mask when out in the public. Time will tell if the virus makes a comeback.

Patients with Covid-19 can develop:

• acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS);
• mental health issues like post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), anxiety and depression;
• impaired lung function; and
• significant health impacts on the heart, kidneys and brain. (Healthline.com)

The future is uncertain. There is no vaccine for the virus. Long-term effects are unknown. Work continues on ways to manage the virus for the long-term. We are living day-to-day with this virus.