Battling the COVID-19 Coronavirus

Some one had said it very well: "It Is Difficult To Do Nothing".

Not that I have nothing to do - I have humongous amount of work to do - all Rotary related. In my capacity as the Club Secretary, our Club Members have willed that I source for funding from around the world to supplement the efforts of the King, The RGoB and the Ministry of Health. Thus even while most of the Bhutanese people are twirling their thumbs in the current locked-down situation - doing nothing, I am frantic with work, communicating with the global community of Rotarians - seeking funding to acquire much needed medical equipment and supplies to battle the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. The Rotary Club of Thimphu is currently endeavoring to help the Ministry of Health acquire the following critically needed supplies that will prevent the spread of COVID-19 coronavirus:

1.  Personal Protection Equipment (PPE)

2.  RNA Extraction Equipment
3.  Deep freezer -80°C/-30°C Freezers
4.  Micro Centrifuge

5. Medical Waste Incinerator to safely dispose off COVID-19

    related medical waste from quarantine centers, isolation

    centers and hospitals.

The good news is that we are pretty much there - substantial sums have been assured by Clubs from Sweden, Malaysia, Japan, Honolulu and Korea - to fund the purchase and donation of the above medical equipment and supplies.

Even better, all of us are doing the work with BIG, BIG SMILES!

Talking of smiles, please take a look at the following - such beautiful smiles. Priceless!!

https://yesheydorji.blogspot.com/2012/10/world-smile-day.html

Bhutan Now Has An Active COVID-19 Case (Beyond Quarantine Phase)

More than 3 months back, I had sounded out through this Blog that we will eventually have our community spread - for me it has always been a matter of WHEN – and not of IF. The government has now announced that the day is here and that we now have an active case within the country. We are now in a locked-down phase - as of today.

I was a little startled by the severity of the lock-down. I did not expect that we would be grounded completely – within the periphery of our own compound. But on thinking deeper – that is the best way to go. With total shut in, we do not have to worry about poor quality face masks, inappropriate handling of masks, repeated hand washing, sanitizing – fear of bumping into people who are infected or are asymptomatic.

The question now is: How long will the lock-down be for? We all realize that it cannot be for too long a duration. And yet, we also cannot let down our guard. But we have to know that lock-down is not an answer – it certainly is not a fight against the virus. It is merely a precaution against something that is here to stay.

Now lets heed sound advise and stay indoors – until we are told that it is safe to venture out into a world that is unlikely to be the same ever again.

The Virus Hunters

Professor Christoper Golden of the Department of Global Health & Population, Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health, USA is leading the  “Virus Hunters” team from NatGeo. He was due to arrive Bhutan during this April but that did not happen due to COVID-19. It is most likely that he will be able to come next year when tourism will open.

The team is doing some interesting work that deals with viruses – its cause and effect. More interestingly it tells of how to prevent future pandemics. Please read at the following:

https://www.mediavillage.com/article/nat-geos-virus-hunters-team-tells-tca-how-to-prevent-future-pandemics/