Sunil J. Wimalawansa, MD, PhD, MBA, DSc.; Professor of Medicine Following are important items that should be (or should have been) implemented to minimize the spreading COVID-19: 1) A rapid, on-site diagnostic method where results are obtained under one-hour. These RT-PCR tests must be sensitive and specific, so that can be used confidently for making the diagnosis or excluding having it, with little or no false positive or false negative findings. 2) Markedly expand the testing facilities, especially outside hospitals and in quarantined facilities, together with, safe and humane isolation. 3) Community-based testing and tracking contacts, and effective reporting system. 4) Effective real-time surveillance of exposed and new patients and disseminate accurate information without cover-ups. 5) Boost the immunity of the entire population: strongly advice people to stay in sunlight for in excess of 30 minutes each day between 10 AM and the midday, with a third of
iSun Sunil J Wimalawansa, MD, PhD, MBA, DSc. Professor of Medicine Why social distancing of 2-meters will not work: Imposing social distancing are essential but that is only one part that efforts needed to prevent the disease. Nevertheless, COVID-19 spreads mostly via air through aerosolized particles, people who are getting infected may not even have a clue how they got it. For example, many are known to denies having any close contact with a person with COVID-19 or someone vigorously coughing. It is the contaminated air that transmit the virus from person to a person. For example, a person can get infected while travelling in buses or in a room, up to 30-feet away from a patient who is coughing. The lack of understanding of this concept has serious repercussions. In addition, the virus thrives in cold and damp conditions, including in air-conditioning systems. So, in the absence of installed HEPA filters as we discussed in the previous article, the majority of current air-co