Working From Home - Impacts of Coronavirus

[metrologist]

Actually that's precisely what I would do. Why would I go to the hospital to try to get tested? If I'm sick the last thing I want to do is go out somewhere and there's no cure for a viral infection other than rest and hydration. Also with all the sick people going to the hospital trying to get tested that's the last place I want to be, if I didn't have it already then that's a good way to pick it up.

Senior editor of the Washington [com]Post says that health care workers generally agree with you. Drs expect to diagnose over the phone, and just have you stay home to prevent spread.

[edavid]

A couple of weeks before that a friend of mine returned home to the UK from here and he was sick for over a week with something resembling pneumonia that could have also been this virus but since neither of them got tested we'll never know if that's what they had or not.

When they develop antibody tests, we'll be able to tell if people had it and recovered.

[PlainName]

Senior editor of the Washington [com]Post says that health care workers generally agree with you.

Pardon me for stating the obvious but you're moving the goalposts. James_s is arguing that by staying at home he won't tell anyone and therefore he won't be in the stats. Your source is saying the opposite - you stay at home but still get diagnosed and therefore become part of the stats.

[metrologist]

Senior editor of the Washington [com]Post says that health care workers generally agree with you.

Pardon me for stating the obvious but you're moving the goalposts. James_s is arguing that by staying at home he won't tell anyone and therefore he won't be in the stats. Your source is saying the opposite - you stay at home but still get diagnosed and therefore become part of the stats.

Sorry, I didn't know James was the goal-post setter (and why would you omit that part of the quote?). In any event, I was just stating what was said on the afternoon talk media, and I would likely do the same and just stay home until I felt death was imminent. My journey would likely start with a call to the local hospital.

[EEVblog]

A couple of more schools in Sydney hit as predicted.

Schools are open in the summer in Sydney?

Err, yeah, why wouldn't they be?
https://www.education.gov.au/school-term-dates-2020
They get all of January off though.
BTW, it's now Autumn.

[PlainName]

(and why would you omit that part of the quote?)

a) To illustrate the exact part I am commenting on, and

b) not have tons and tons of quotes to wade through just to get to a one or two word comment.

Think of it as keeping the place tidy and pertinent

[EEVblog]

Not just there. I wouldn't go to the doctor, unless I have fever, cause they will look at me, "prescribe" Paracetamol and send me home. I can stay at home and tell my employer that I'm sick, no matter what the sickness is.
But as I understand, lots of the infected have mild symptoms.

And that's the thing.
Mrs EEVblog had a mild sniffle the other week the same time Sagan had one. You don't call the virus hotline for that.
If I got a runny nose I wouldn't either, I'd just do my best to ensure no one else got it from me.
I'd likely have to have real symptoms like a fever (don't recall ever having a fever for the flu) or a cough (I usually get that post a bad flu) before I called the hotline or my doctor.

[james_s]

I strongly suspect I had that swine flu that went around several years ago. I had a high fever and felt awful for a few days, however it didn't last as long as other times I've had the flu, it kinda hit hard and heavy and burned out fast. I didn't go to the doctor, I felt terrible, going out was the last thing I wanted to do. I spent the whole time in bed aside from the bare minimum like feeding myself and the cat. I don't think there's anything a doctor could have done.

[metrologist]

(and why would you omit that part of the quote?)

a) To illustrate the exact part I am commenting on, and

b) not have tons and tons of quotes to wade through just to get to a one or two word comment.

Think of it as keeping the place tidy and pertinent

I only had two points, and you didn't quote the part you commented on. The phone diagnosis would be primarily for screening, for other things than what you are probably thinking. The US, who's flag James flys, is lacking test kits anyway.

[PlainName]

you didn't quote the part you commented on

I reckon I did, you know. (Well, clearly, you don't but I certainly do.)

Blimey, you couldn't make this stuff up

[coppice]

Not just there. I wouldn't go to the doctor, unless I have fever, cause they will look at me, "prescribe" Paracetamol and send me home. I can stay at home and tell my employer that I'm sick, no matter what the sickness is.
But as I understand, lots of the infected have mild symptoms.

And that's the thing.
Mrs EEVblog had a mild sniffle the other week the same time Sagan had one. You don't call the virus hotline for that.
If I got a runny nose I wouldn't either, I'd just do my best to ensure no one else got it from me.
I'd likely have to have real symptoms like a fever (don't recall ever having a fever for the flu) or a cough (I usually get that post a bad flu) before I called the hotline or my doctor.

Visiting a family doctor for simple infections is more a cultural thing than a medical thing. Some people grow up with the expectation that every sniffle needs to be attended by a doctor, even when they have to pay a considerable amount for each doctor's appointment. Others treat doctors as a last resort.

[Yansi]

Our country is not that bad yet with the number of those infected. Yet government is starting to take strict actions. All schools in our country now closed. All gatherings of 100 or more people are prohibited. Pretty hefty fines (about $150.000) for people violating quarantine laws.

Today, our employer directed us to work from home from tomorrow. I think that is a wise move. Gladly I live some distance from all larger cities. Not as far as I would like, but at least not in the center of a large city. 

Few days back we got a conference call from our boss, verifying who got the VPN, company cell phones, laptops nd external access to data. So I think our employer is taking all precautions well ahead of possible bad times. We got even hand sanitizers install in the company premises.

//EDIT: Corrected typo.

//EDIT: Added other relevant info.

[EEVblog]

Our country is not that bad yet with the number of those infected. Yet government is starting to take strict actions. All schools in our country now closed. All gatherings of 100 or more people are prohibited. Pretty hefty fines (about $150.000) for people violating quarantine laws.

I'm not sure at what point that is going to happen in Sydney, but I'm sure there is threshold somewhere...
There is a decent chance we get away with this for now due to our warmer climate and just days out of summer here. But if that happens, winter would be open season.

[Bud]

What is the deal with the $ 150,000 fine? This is unrealistic any individual  would be able to pay.

[metrologist]

you didn't quote the part you commented on

I reckon I did, you know. (Well, clearly, you don't but I certainly do.)

Blimey, you couldn't make this stuff up

Just for my own future reading, I'll summarize:

James: I wouldn't go to hospital to get tested because, no cure, risk of exposure...
Metrologist: Reporters say health officials agree with that...
dunkemhigh: Whoa, you're moving goal posts. Some tangent about about stats...

 

[PlainName]

There is a decent chance we get away with this for now due to our warmer climate and just days out of summer here. But if that happens, winter would be open season.

Your climate has to be good for something besides fires and floods.

By next Winter there will no doubt be a vaccination or something, so you might escape this altogether.

[Yansi]

What is the deal with the $ 150,000 fine? This is unrealistic any individual  would be able to pay.

Yeah, many people complained. But guess what will be the bill the state/gov has to pay the hospitals and such if one such idiot does not stay home and infects many hundreds more people? And you don't have to do much guesswork to find out people are retarded morons.

I agree that fine level is a nonsense, but I kind of understand it and idiots deserve this fine. And I hope the state/gov will go and really claw back the money from them.  Staying quarantined for a couple of weeks is nothing that would hurt anyone. It is the least you can "pay" for being a moron visiting Italy in the middle of this crisis.

It is estimated we have more than 15 000 people in the freakin italian mordor. Good that they have locked all of them down there. You can bet there would be a lot of people that would lie about "they've not been in Italy" and just spread the disease further.

One such case I think was recently reported from Slovakia, where a parent lied about a child has been already tested on arrival from Italy, but it wasn't at all.

[Sal Ammoniac]

A couple of more schools in Sydney hit as predicted.

Schools are open in the summer in Sydney?

Err, yeah, why wouldn't they be?
https://www.education.gov.au/school-term-dates-2020
They get all of January off though.
BTW, it's now Autumn.

No reason, I guess. When I went to school here in the States, our school year was September 15th through June 15th. In other words, we got the entire summer off, except for about a week in September.

Do you have an "unofficial" start of autumn there in Australia like we do here? Although the actual start of autumn in the northern hemisphere is September 23rd, everyone considers it to start immediately after our Labor Day holiday, which is the first Monday in September.

[maginnovision]

As someone with a lung disease I'd certainly rather not get this. When the flu comes around I get my flu shot since the flu can also put me in the hospital, can't do that with this. It's already around here so all I can do is wait and see if I get it. When I saw two symptoms were trouble breathing and chest pain I chuckled, I have that all the time. Guess I'd have to wait on fever or cough.

[Nusa]

Don't forget that some people will get such a mild case that they don't even think they have it. But they can still spread it wherever they work or play. Maybe they'll get in the statistics later on when people around them get sick.

[EEVblog]

No reason, I guess. When I went to school here in the States, our school year was September 15th through June 15th. In other words, we got the entire summer off, except for about a week in September.

We get a week before xmas to end of Jan/early Feb, not quite the whole summer.

Do you have an "unofficial" start of autumn there in Australia like we do here?

Nope, 1st March is Autumn.

[Sal Ammoniac]

Do you have an "unofficial" start of autumn there in Australia like we do here?

Nope, 1st March is Autumn.

Surely that's the unofficial start of autumn there. Astronomically speaking, autumn starts when the sun reaches one of its equinoxes (crosses the celestial equator), which occur twice a year six months apart. The March equinox this year occurs on 19th March at 03:34 UTC. The September equinox happens on 22nd September at 13:15 UTC.

[EEVblog]

Do you have an "unofficial" start of autumn there in Australia like we do here?

Nope, 1st March is Autumn.

Surely that's the unofficial start of autumn there. Astronomically speaking, autumn starts when the sun reaches one of its equinoxes (crosses the celestial equator), which occur twice a year six months apart. The March equinox this year occurs on 19th March at 03:34 UTC. The September equinox happens on 22nd September at 13:15 UTC.

Can't say I've ever heard anyone in Australia use astronomical dates.
"1st of December, summer, you bloody ripper!"
"1st of June, winter, bummer"
And it seems official according to our BOM:
http://www.bom.gov.au/climate/glossary/seasons.shtml

[tszaboo]

Not just there. I wouldn't go to the doctor, unless I have fever, cause they will look at me, "prescribe" Paracetamol and send me home. I can stay at home and tell my employer that I'm sick, no matter what the sickness is.
But as I understand, lots of the infected have mild symptoms.

And that's the thing.
Mrs EEVblog had a mild sniffle the other week the same time Sagan had one. You don't call the virus hotline for that.
If I got a runny nose I wouldn't either, I'd just do my best to ensure no one else got it from me.
I'd likely have to have real symptoms like a fever (don't recall ever having a fever for the flu) or a cough (I usually get that post a bad flu) before I called the hotline or my doctor.

Visiting a family doctor for simple infections is more a cultural thing than a medical thing. Some people grow up with the expectation that every sniffle needs to be attended by a doctor, even when they have to pay a considerable amount for each doctor's appointment. Others treat doctors as a last resort.

Well, not just that. In Hungary and Belgium (example, because I lived there), to go on a sick leave, you have to bring paper from your GP to your employer. Sick leave means anything longer than a day. So if you have strep throat, common cold, or any other respiratory infection, you pay a visit to the doctor. I stay at home at worst times, as I dont want to pass this to my colleges.
Here in NL, you can pretty much stay at home for a few days, and you can do that on your own discretion. If your employer dont trust you, they can send you to the doctor, but it is unusual, I never was asked to do so. The law is different.

[EEVblog]

As predicted, mass arse-covering mode has begun:
Harvard and MIT among others schools have told student to stay home and remote study after the spring break.
https://www.bostonherald.com/2020/03/10/coronavirus-prompts-harvard-mit-to-send-students-home/