[Health] The Infectious Diseases Thread

[Malificent]

Got some information that it's very likely we will never go back to being in the office full-time (unless we absolutely choose to do so).

They sent out a survey to measure how many people wanted to work from home full-time, work from the office full-time, or work in the office part-time using a shared workspace.

The overwhelming majority of our department wished to stay working from home full-time, which is a big change from pre-pandemic attitudes. Our company was experimenting with WFH before Covid, and at that point most people preferred office work.

Apparently discussions are already underway on sub-leasing our old office space. It's amazing what a difference a year (and a once-in-a-century pandemic) makes.

I know people who have had to work from home. Initially they set up a home office out of what they had. A nightstand for a desk, a dining room chair for an office chair, and so on. Then, months into working from home, they invested in building a usable home office. Now they are dismayed at any news from their employer that working from home may be coming to an end for them. Their home offices have become their comfort zones. Not having to lose X amount of time commuting to work means they've started using that time for other things and don't want to give those things up now. The amount of money they spent on gasoline has gone down so much they can't believe it, and are not eager to start having to spend that much on gas again.

I noticed, pre-pandemic, that sometimes you can tell people how great something is and they'll ignore you because unless you experience some things you can't really know how great they are. I think that working from home is one of those things. Not that I think everyone loves it, but I bet a very large number of people have learned to love it even though they might have scoffed at the idea of working from home before the pandemic.

This is me. I'm not looking forward to going back into the office again, Especially this part:

Not having to lose X amount of time commuting to work means they've started using that time for other things and don't want to give those things up now

[Isgrimnur]

I'm going into the office tomorrow. My office is now 50 miles from my house.

[Smoove_B]

I'm going into the office tomorrow. My office is now 50 miles from my house.

I see all the words you've written, but I can't process them. Be safe.

[Kraken]

Wife's employer says they'll make a determination about office hours in June or July. Scuttlebutt says most workers will be required to go in once or twice a week, but for old people (such as her), and those who live far away, it will be less frequent. I wouldn't mind having an excuse to go into the city once or twice a month. I wonder if any of the restaurants we liked will still be there.

She used to spend 2+ hours a day commuting. Now she spends those hours working.

[YellowKing]

It's going to be interesting to see how they handle various challenges arising from a hybrid workforce (some on site, some remote).

For example, our network team has to come in often enough for hardware upgrades, on-site troubleshooting, etc. that they are in the office 50% of the time. We have qualified applicants that the company wants to hire that will only work remote. So how do you make that fair? Pay the folks more that have to come on-site? Move the current folks full remote and have on-site work handled by a different team?

We're also dealing with the complexity of hiring out-of-state employees. Our payroll can't process someone who pays taxes in, say, California. However, remote work makes it perfectly valid that we can pull labor from states across the country. So we're scrambling to update our payroll systems to be able to handle that.

At some point we'll get all this figured out, and I truly believe in the long run it will be a win-win for employees and employers. Obviously it's not practical for all companies, and there are going to be significant challenges. But we've been forced in a year to make changes that previously may have taken a decade to come to fruition.

[Kraken]

Tomorrow MA finally rolls out a preregistration site. Leave your info and they'll contact you when a slot opens up. You have 24 hours to claim the slot or go back into the pool. That's fine, but it only applies to the seven mass vaccination centers, and you can only go to the one closest to you. If I wanted to go to one of the megasites at all, I'd choose Natick because I can drive there and park. However, I think the Hynes Center is geographically closer; that would entail a long T ride, or driving into and parking in the city, which I'm loath to do.

I'll check out the website and see if I can tell which megasite it assigns me to. If it's Natick, I'll sign up. If it's Hynes, I'll keep waiting.

[coopasonic]

My county added 50+ to the list... 14 months too young!

[Smoove_B]

I know everyone is tired of talking about COVID-19, so I'm hopeful that I'll be to find (and share) an easily digestible article about the current Ebola outbreak that's happening in Africa right now. In short, it's terrifying because of what they've just learned.

For decades, Ebola outbreaks seem to be cyclical in nature - they spark up for reasons unknown, spread, and then disappear for a few years. Every time it happens they try to figure out the exact source and they're usually traced back to an environmental (wilderness) encounter where the working theory is that someone had contact with a wild animal and the virus jumped species and kicked off an outbreak. They figure all this out through genetic mapping and while it's never fully conclusive, it helps paint a picture.

Well for the current outbreak, the virus that's spreading is nearly identical (viral genome) to the virus that caused the last major outbreak (~2015). This goes against all that's known about Ebola in that they would expect significant genomic differences. Why is that terrifying? Because it means that it's potentially likely that someone has been carrying it around for 5+ years (likely as a latent infection - like herpes) and for whatever reason (unknown) the virus reactivated and started spreading again.

This goes against all that's known about Ebola (and the category of viruses that Ebola belongs to) - 40+ years of science and research can't account for this.

So yeah, terrifying. I'll keep watching for a non-science heavy article and share the terror when I can.

[Blackhawk]

Dammit, Smoove. I just put my blanky away from the last one!

[pr0ner]

It's going to be interesting to see how they handle various challenges arising from a hybrid workforce (some on site, some remote).

I've started seeing articles about my government agency possibly shedding physical office space such as by subletting floors and/or buildings to other government agencies or even non-government entities (that last would be weird given all the security upgrades the buildings have gotten the past few months).

Since the end of June, my agency went to Phase 1, which was no more than 100 people per building a day. Only time you could be in was 7A-6P M-F, excluding federal holidays. Not many people were even eligible to come back to begin with, but even so, the number of people in the 5 main buildings have varied between 100-150, total. Which, in the old administration, would frequently include the director and his #2.

It will be very interesting to see how many people actually come back by the time we're fully open. Phase 2, which is still TBD, would only mandate people who weren't teleworking before the pandemic (like me) to come back; this would basically mean the office would be full of junior employees and the random 100-150 of us who have been coming in already. Phase 3 is supposed to be back to business as normal, but I would imagine a bunch of people who weren't working at home full time may transition to that permanently.

She used to spend 2+ hours a day commuting. Now she spends those hours working.

I know people tout increased productivity as one of the benefits from working at home full time, but why wouldn't she just reclaim those 2+ hours to herself rather than working them every day?

[Paingod]

So yeah, terrifying. I'll keep watching for a non-science heavy article and share the terror when I can.

Just pop the flare when we need to move to Level 1 Hazmat suits, okay? I've been trained on them. They're clunky and difficult to move around in, but struggling to pick up the pen I just dropped is super-preferable to bleeding out of all the orifices.

[Blackhawk]

You know the 'go back in time and invest in Microsoft/Google' spiel?

I'd love to go back five years and create an established home office business. Something that was recognized name in planning, or building/room conversion, or home office furniture, or specialty materials, whatever. What was a niche market two years ago will be mainstream from now on.

[Kraken]

She used to spend 2+ hours a day commuting. Now she spends those hours working.

I know people tout increased productivity as one of the benefits from working at home full time, but why wouldn't she just reclaim those 2+ hours to herself rather than working them every day?

Because she is chronically overworked, and more hours during the workday means fewer hours on nights and weekends. Also because her schedule is driven by endless zoom meetings. Also because of time differences; she can only meet with the Indian team at 7 a.m.

[pr0ner]

She used to spend 2+ hours a day commuting. Now she spends those hours working.

I know people tout increased productivity as one of the benefits from working at home full time, but why wouldn't she just reclaim those 2+ hours to herself rather than working them every day?

Because she is chronically overworked, and more hours during the workday means fewer hours on nights and weekends. Also because her schedule is driven by endless zoom meetings. Also because of time differences; she can only meet with the Indian team at 7 a.m.

Understood. But, definitely doesn't sound ideal!

[Jeff V]

You know the 'go back in time and invest in Microsoft/Google' spiel?

I'd love to go back five years and create an established home office business. Something that was recognized name in planning, or building/room conversion, or home office furniture, or specialty materials, whatever. What was a niche market two years ago will be mainstream from now on.

Two years ago, those in the market for such probably were probably self-employed people realizing tax breaks for doing so. There is no tax savings when working as a regular employee at home, regardless of how much you dedicate space and equipment.

[Daehawk]

So does your company's insurance cover you for falls in your own home? You'd think it would if you were on their time.

[Kraken]

She used to spend 2+ hours a day commuting. Now she spends those hours working.

I know people tout increased productivity as one of the benefits from working at home full time, but why wouldn't she just reclaim those 2+ hours to herself rather than working them every day?

Because she is chronically overworked, and more hours during the workday means fewer hours on nights and weekends. Also because her schedule is driven by endless zoom meetings. Also because of time differences; she can only meet with the Indian team at 7 a.m.

Understood. But, definitely doesn't sound ideal!

She's been interviewing prospective assistants this week, so relief is in sight.

[Alefroth]

So does your company's insurance cover you for falls in your own home? You'd think it would if you were on their time.

Good question. I'd guess it hasn't been codified yet.

[dbt1949]

I have noticed here in Arkansas and Oklahoma that altho the number of new covid cases is dropping the number of deaths is still staying relatively high.
I don't quite know what to make of that.

[Daehawk]

If its like many places its because testing has dropped. The average is 30% less.

[Blackhawk]

Part of it is that there's always a delay between new cases and the associated deaths. So if a bunch of people are exposed today, they get put on the 'new cases' chart in a week or two when they develop symptoms and go for testing, but don't end up on the 'deaths' chart for several weeks (time spent in the hospital.)

I see that Arkansas is in the middle of a spike in deaths, and two weeks ago they had a spike in new cases which then dropped. Those two things likely correspond. I've also seen random spikes in death count in places caused by infections in a closed environment (like it takes hold in a nursing home), or a state realizing that they made a mistake and updating their case counts later (IE - if on March 14th they realize they misreported back in January and update their totals, it may count as a crap-ton of March 14th deaths.) I've seen spikes because of delayed reporting (some counties not sending in their data on time, then sending in a bunch), or false drops because of holidays when there is no reporting, followed by a false spike when the holiday cases are reported afterwards.

Looking through the official data, I also see that Arkansas doesn't like graphs. They give you lots of information on today, but if you want to see trends you have to look elsewhere.

And Daehawk, that one goes both ways. It's true that if you test less you get fewer cases, but its also true that if cases drop, testing drops. If people aren't getting sick, they're not going for tests.

[Smoove_B]

Dammit, Smoove. I just put my blanky away from the last one!

As promised, here's the article for those interested.

The virus can linger in pockets around the body and can infect others on rare occasions, according to STAT. Such transmission typically occurs when a male survivor infects a female through sexual contact, according to STAT.

But in the case of this new outbreak, the story is still muddled. More research is needed to tease out exactly what happened, according to Science Magazine. The first known case of the current outbreak in Guinea was a nurse who was infected and died in January, though it's also possible that the nurse was infected after caring for her sick mother, according to STAT News; a couple of people then became infected after attending the funeral.

Confirming that I'm still warning y'all about Ebola semen, but it's unclear what (and how) it happened here.

[Isgrimnur]

I don't want to think about body pockets.

[hitbyambulance]

To understand the additive effects of behaviour and immunity, consider that this flu season has been unusually mild. “Influenza is probably not less transmissible than COVID-19,” Scarpino says. “Almost certainly, the reason why flu did not show up this year is because we typically have about 30% of the population immune because they’ve been infected in previous years, and you get vaccination covering maybe another 30%. So you’re probably sitting at 60% or so immune.” Add mask wearing and social distancing, and “the flu just can’t make it”, Scarpino says. This back-of-the-envelope calculation shows how behaviour can change the equation, and why more people would need to be immunized to attain herd immunity as people stop practising behaviours such as social distancing.

https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-021-00728-2

[Daehawk]

This isn't about infectious stuff but theres no real general health thread that I see and this one gets lots of postings so thought Id try here.

Ive had a mole on my back since I was a child. Its not a funny color but it used to be small...like pencil eraser or so size. Until about 10 years ago when it decided to be an adult. Now its about as big around as my pinky tip and as big as up to my first knuckle. Its skin tone and very fleshy soft. Same old size at base but grown up.

As a kid my mom took me to her skin doctor and had some removed. He deadened them, pulled and cut them, then used a laser to stop the bleeding. A laser at that time was pretty new Id think . Would have been around 1983.

Anyways now I have a walk in clinic as my primary care doctor. I asked her about it and she said she could take it off right there in the room. Im guessing she would deaden it and sew a stitch or two in it. She didn't say. I know she doesn't have a laser. She did say it was a skin tag. To me it is not a skin tag. And simply getting a scalpel and removing it sounds a bit odd.

So should I just get it done there or should I be seeing some kind of dermatologist for this?

[Zarathud]

Separate thread, man.

[dbt1949]

While mowing this weekend my penis fell off. It must have cause I can't find it anymore.

[Z-Corn]

Separate thread, man.

A Random Skin Tags I Have Loved And Lost Randomness thread?

[Blackhawk]

This isn't about infectious stuff but theres no real general health thread that I see and this one gets lots of postings so thought Id try here.

If I may offer...

[Sudy]

I think I'm finally tired of complaining... I just don't have any energy for this left.

As cases begin to climb again, Ontario's going into... shutdown, or something. Not lockdown. The news sites reported that the provincial government is using their "emergency break", as if that's some kind of quantifiable term. I have no problem with the actual action of course; it should have come sooner, or the last one never should have begun to be lifted in the first place, when doctors and scientists have been warning us about the third wave for weeks. But there's just no consistency in terminology, and it's confusing the public. I get that the science continues to evolve, but as people are increasingly exhausted by over a year of restrictions, clarity is sorely needed.

‘He’s specifically targeting our sector,’ Ont. beauty council says after Ford announces provincewide shutdown

“I think there was a lot of shock and disappointment, and obviously anger,” Paola Girotti, chair of the Beauty United Council of Ontario, said about the looming shutdown in an interview with CTV News Toronto Friday morning.

“We want to open. We know how to keep people safe. And we just want to be able to work and help people,” she added.

Shuttered businesses and the temporarily unemployed still need to be helped by the government. I don't know how that's economically viable at this point, but I hope they find a way. However, stuff like this just seems so out of touch. A nail salon might have its employees behind plastic screens and require everyone to wear masks, but if you're leaving your house to get your nails done, you're an non-essential vector of infection. And I don't see how it's a close-to-zero-risk endeavour unless they're double-masking and doing asymptomatic testing, etc. That's not "keeping people safe", it's unnecessarily contributing to the pandemic.

Meanwhile, I'm seeing shit on my Facebook feed like, "Hairdressers can go to the bank, but bankers can't go to the hairdresser? And they can both go to Costco? HURR HURR". And 99% percent of the responses are likes and LOLs, and replies like, "It's called control. This is just the beginning." I know these posts are their own little echo chambers... most people who see how illogical they are are smart enough not to get involved. But it's just embarrassing to humanity. I'm not a genius by any stretch, but I don't understand how so many people can be so incredibly stupid. If you want to complain you're unhappy you can't get a haircut, that's totally reasonable. But failing to understand and accept the reason is inexcusable.

[Blackhawk]

I think I'm finally tired of complaining... I just don't have any energy for this left.

That's a big part of why I'm really looking forward to the family getting their vaccines. I'm tired of fighting, pushing, and arguing. At least if my family is safe and the people around me are effing morons, it's less likely to kill or cripple me and my family.

[Jeff V]

I think I'm finally tired of complaining... I just don't have any energy for this left.

That's a big part of why I'm really looking forward to the family getting their vaccines. I'm tired of fighting, pushing, and arguing. At least if my family is safe and the people around me are effing morons, it's less likely to kill or cripple me and my family.

I just found out my sister, who has worked for Walgreens for 30+ years, is a nut-job anti-vaccer. She is not allowed to see my kids, possibly forever.

[Sudy]

I don't know how to get it through to these people... restaurants/gyms/hairdressers/etc. aren't being asked to close during lockdowns because these venues have necessarily been documented sources of transmission. It's because they encourage uneccessary congregation. There's no one venue for the spread of covid. The venue is wherever a sick person might interact with others.

The mayor of a local municipality asked why grocery stores aren't being asked to close instead/as well. BECAUSE PEOPLE NEED GROCERIES. One could argue they could all go curbside or online delivery, but there isn't infrastructure to support that, and it's unlikely many older and older-minded citizens could get on board. As for why factories, warehouses, and cramped offices are allowed to continue operate as is though... yeah, he's got a point there. Broken clock and all that.


My mom is skeptical of vaccines on account of my sister's learning disabilities (yeah, I dunno) and not having a very good filter for some of the things she sees online. Getting her vaccinated is going to be an uphill battle. Which will mostly be my dad's job. But my blood pressure is already climbing because of it. At least she hasn't left the house for the past year due to her other illnesses, but that doesn't stop my dad from being a potential source of infection.

[Smoove_B]

I share on this side of the fence (as there's no R&P) for those with kids that are thinking about vacation this summer:

Jennifer Nuzzo, the lead epidemiologist for the Johns Hopkins Coronavirus Resource Center, is planning to travel domestically this year with her family — though they’ve held off on picking a spot as they gather information on what locales might pose more or less danger of exposure.

In her “exposure budget” she said she was prioritizing risks that had a clear benefit to the health and development of her kids, who are 4 and 7, such as visits with extended family.

I'm a big fan of the "exposure budget" (no surprise) mentality; it has served me well.

Regarding travel:

Although the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have spent the better part of a year discouraging nonessential travel to prevent further virus transmission, on Friday the agency announced that fully vaccinated people can now travel safely on mass transportation, including planes, in the United States.

But at a White House news conference announcing the new guidance, C.D.C. officials hedged, saying that they would prefer that people avoid travel because of the rising number of coronavirus cases, even though domestic travel is considered “low-risk” for those who are fully vaccinated. Most of the experts we spoke with plan to drive to their destinations, in part because their children are not vaccinated.

[dbt1949]

I was in the store this morning and I saw some guy walking around without a mask. I was thinking bad thoughts about him until I remembered.........there is no state wide (or city wide) mandate anymore.

[Smoove_B]

I was at the supermarket yesterday getting curbside pickup and the guy across from me had his mask under his chin with a cigarette dangling from his lips. When the courier arrived with his packages he continued smoking (mask around chin) and proceeded to supervise the kid loading the groceries in his trunk by standing over his shoulder and apparently approving how it was all being loaded.

People are...special.

[Sudy]

So, a week after the Lord High Magistrate of Salon-Related Business Concerns declared salons aren't where covid spreads, a local salon is revealed to have potentially exposed nearly 100 patrons after 7 of its 8 members worked while infected, and they neglected to follow contract tracing guidelines, so a public health warning has had to be put out. No, this doesn't make me happy. But I just wish people understood that covid hot spots are any spots where people congregate, and past occurrences do not necessarily predict future events when people are sloppy and transmission cannot be 100% prevented. Yes, I realize closing these types of businesses unfairly impacts women and minorities and it's important to take that into account, but these sweeping precautions are necessary.

Meanwhile, Ontario is reporting the highest case totals in three months and elective surgeries are starting to be cancelled.

[Sudy]

For the first time, during this lockdown, Ontario is prohibiting essential retailers from selling non-essential items. I have a mixed reaction to this. It probably should have occurred during the previous lockdowns. But it's also kind of stupid... I went into the dollar store and could buy batteries, but I couldn't get a USB cable to charge Mrs. Nym's cell. We have other cables; it's not urgent. I get that they're trying to motivate people to do curbside pick-up or order less urgent items online. But if you don't have a car and/or e.g. are senior or disabled, your life really gets tougher.

This includes clothing. All I can think is, what if you're poor (or a bad planner) and only have a couple work outfits, and they get lost or wrecked? I'm tempted to say something like, "thank goodness I was able to get those Cheetos though", but that's the kind of near-sighted, low-hanging comment I ridicule others for.

[Blackhawk]

That's the problem - defining what 'essential' is. A quick look suggests that it includes school supplies, kitchen supplies, candles, office supplies, and others. No office supplies? I hope your mouse doesn't break when you need to schedule a COVID vaccine. And from what I'm reading, retailers don't really have a mechanism to stop the sales items by item (and a cashier guessing wrong can lead to big fines), so they're simply roping them off, and other essential items are getting caught up in blocked off areas. One person was reporting that face masks were blocked off this way, and others are reporting that baby supplies were. That's loony. It is how not to manage an emergency.

[Paingod]

I was in the store this morning and I saw some guy walking around without a mask. I was thinking bad thoughts about him until I remembered.........there is no state wide (or city wide) mandate anymore.

Just because the people at the top don't care who lives and dies doesn't mean that it's okay for everyone else to go the same way. Go ahead and keep thinking those bad thoughts about people who would willingly expose others to a deadly virus because it's too inconvenient to be a decent human being.