From empty shelves of hand sanitizer, no more masks to be purchased and shortage of sanitary supplies at local stores, Central New Yorkers aren’t sure what to expect.
With a rising number of coronavirus cases, Syracuse is taking action to make sure its residents are well informed.
This morning there was a round table with doctors Indu Gupta and Karen Nardella to discuss infectious diseases, namely covid-19.
Dr. Gupta, who is the Onondaga county health commissioner said it is still too early to tell.
“That’s why it’s called novel coronavirus, it’s new in the way it’s behaving, it’s changing its way, it’s showing its rath,” said Dr. Gupta.
In New York state there are currently 216 people who have tested positive for covid-19, of those cases a majority of them are not in New York City.
There are no positive cases in Syracuse right now, but that doesn’t mean there’s no plan, Dr. Gupta said they’re getting ready for anything.
“It will happen here. When? I have no idea; nobody has any idea about that. What we are doing is preparing ourselves to make sure we are in a good place,” said Gupta.
Similar to health officials across the nation, the ones here in Syracuse said it’s important not to panic and to continue life as usual. But just remember to wash your hands, cough into your arm and try to avoid touching your face as much as possible.
Dr. Nardella said, Syracuse University’s medical director said all they can do for now is spread accurate information.
“Educational events like this are very important because that’s how we’re going to spread the word to people about what things they need to do to protect themselves and what things they need to not panic about,” said Nardella.
Dr. Nardella said it’s important for the public to stay engaged as things differ day to day.
“Everything’s changing. We’re probably going to test more people, and it’s not going to be based on a few countries or exposure,” said Dr. Nardella.
For up to date information about coronavirus in the state you can visit health.ny.gov.
