JACKSON, Wyo. — In reaction to the Chinese virus that is raising pandemic fears, St. John’s Health and the Teton County Department of Health are instituting precautionary measures designed to prevent and respond to the potential for coronavirus exposure in the community.
The novel coronavirus was discovered first in Wuhan City, China. Additional cases have been confirmed in Thailand, Korea, Japan, France, UAE, and the United States. Chinese leaders are sharing findings and research with the international scientific community. That was not the case with the SARS outbreak 17 years ago.
Coronaviruses are a large family of viruses. Some cause illness in people; numerous other coronaviruses circulate among animals, including camels, cats, and bats. Rarely, animal coronaviruses can evolve, infect people, and then spread between people such has been seen with Middle Eastern Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus and Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus.
Many unknowns about the new strain persist. National and international health authorities are working diligently to gain additional information.
In Teton County and Wyoming, efforts to ensure public safety are being developed with information from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC). Updates from the CDC are being monitored daily. For additional information for the public, the CDC has created a website dedicated to this novel virus.
At St. John’s Health, all patients presenting with signs of respiratory illness are being provided with masks and asked to perform hand hygiene. For patients presenting with fever, cough, or respiratory illness, staff is asking questions about the patient’s travel history.
Should staff become concerned about a patient’s potential exposure to coronavirus, the CDC guidelines for preventing the spread of illness would be followed. St. John’s Health and the Teton County Health Department will update the public, as necessary, as this situation evolves.
To date, no case of coronavirus has been confirmed in Wyoming. There are still scarce reported cases in the United States, and all confirmed cases have been in people who have traveled to China, according to NPR. Health professionals still say influenza, aka the flu, is a much more serious threat.
