COVID-19 ;are you among the high risk group?

What is a risk group?

A risk group of any disease means the group of idividuals who are more vulnerable to to contract the disease and who are more likely to experience severe  illness from the disease. In our case here we are focusing on the risk groups of the corona virus.Lately the world is fighting the global pandemic as the numbers rises steadily with usa being the most affected country by the pandemic.Its important know the risk groups in the society so as to develop means of protecting them from contracting the disease

The centre for Disease Control and prevention has declared the persons at greater risk of of serious morbidity and mortality from coronavirus  as

• Older people at the age of above 65 years.
• older people above 65 years with underlying conditions.
• people who live in a nursing home or a long term medical care facility.
• people who are immunocompromised.
• people of all ages with underlying medical conditions especially if not well treated.
• recent study suggests that infants and young children are at risk also.
• individuals with a medical condition that affects their breathing.

why are elderly people are at risk?

Older people have a low immunity compared to the young generation,this is based to the fact that the immunity decreases with age,they are not at risk of getting corona virus alone,they are vulnerable to all infectious disease.Most old people in most societal settings are engraved by poverty which increases their risk.The elderly people are in most cases isolated amd have mobility challenges,therefore the important information is not within their reach..The elderly people are not able to acquire the required things to take care of themselves due to them living in poor conditions.

people with underlying medical conditions regardless of the age bracket.

People with underlying medical condition such as

• chronic lung disease or moderate to severe asthma.
• people with serious heart diseases for instance heart failure 
• people living with diabetes.
• long term kidney disease.
• people with long term liver diseases like hepatitis
• long term neurological conditions like parkinsons disease,motor neurone disorder,and cerebral palsy among others.
• Obesity with a body mass  index of 40 or above,these are the severely obese people
• a weakened immune system as a result of medical condition such as HIV and AIDS.
• people with spleen problems like sickle cell anaemia or have spleenectomy perfomed.

People living in nursing homes or long term medical care facility.

These are at risk due to their interactions with the sick patients in the facility,unrestricted interactions increase the risk even higher if the involved party is of old age above 60 years.

people who are immunocompromised.

several conditions can lead to an individual being immunocompromised for instance

• undergoing cancer treatment popularly known as chemotherapy or radiotherapy
• smoking
• bone marrow or organ transplantation.
• persons with immune deficiencies such as HIV or poorly mentained immunedeficiencies.
• prolonged use of immune weakening medications and long term use of corticosteroids.
• people undergoing dialysis

what can the high risk group do to protect themselves from infection.

people who have been defined above as high risk group should follow the following set guidelines strictly,

1. social distancing.
2. staying at home as much as they can and avoiding any movements no unless its that serious.
3. frequent proper and adequate handwashing with soap and running water.do you know to properly wash hands as stipulated by WHO
4. proper disinfecting of the sorroundings of where they stay
5. avoiding visitations and receive visitors when its absolutely necessary
6. avoid crowds and ensure atleast a distance of 3m if its absolutely necessary to travel.
7. have neighbours or relatives help with shopping of the groceries as the also follow the guidelines
8. people who develop cough and fever should visit the doctor.