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JERUSALEM — The Israeli ambulance system normally fields about 6,000 calls a day. Since the coronavirus crisis began, it has been averaging an astounding 100,000 calls a day.
JERUSALEM — The Israeli ambulance system normally fields about 6,000 calls a day. Since the coronavirus crisis began, it has been averaging an astounding 100,000 calls a day.
In the southern town of Beersheba, a pair of emergency medical technicians were about 40 minutes into their shift on Tuesday afternoon when things suddenly grew quiet. No panic attacks, no elderly people running out of medicine, no kitchen accidents involving people stuck at home.
In the southern town of Beersheba, a pair of emergency medical technicians were about 40 minutes into their shift on Tuesday afternoon when things suddenly grew quiet. No panic attacks, no elderly people running out of medicine, no kitchen accidents involving people stuck at home.
So they stepped out of the ambulance to pray.
So they stepped out of the ambulance to pray.
Avraham Mintz, 43, a Jew from Beersheba, wrapped himself in his prayer shawl and turned north toward Jerusalem. Zoher Abu Jama, 39, an Arab from nearby Rahat, unfolded his prayer rug and knelt facing south toward Mecca.
Avraham Mintz, 43, a Jew from Beersheba, wrapped himself in his prayer shawl and turned north toward Jerusalem. Zoher Abu Jama, 39, an Arab from nearby Rahat, unfolded his prayer rug and knelt facing south toward Mecca.
A co-worker snapped and posted a picture, which appeared to strike a chord far and wide.
A co-worker snapped and posted a picture, which appeared to strike a chord far and wide.
But the two men said their back-to-back worship was nothing new.
But the two men said their back-to-back worship was nothing new.
“We try to pray together, instead of each one of us taking the time for himself, because we have a lot of situations we’re dealing with right now,” Mr. Mintz said. Five people have died of the virus in Israel so far and one in the occupied West Bank.
“We try to pray together, instead of each one of us taking the time for himself, because we have a lot of situations we’re dealing with right now,” Mr. Mintz said. Five people have died of the virus in Israel so far and one in the occupied West Bank.
Updated June 22, 2020
A commentary published this month on the website of the British Journal of Sports Medicine points out that covering your face during exercise “comes with issues of potential breathing restriction and discomfort” and requires “balancing benefits versus possible adverse events.” Masks do alter exercise, says Cedric X. Bryant, the president and chief science officer of the American Council on Exercise, a nonprofit organization that funds exercise research and certifies fitness professionals. “In my personal experience,” he says, “heart rates are higher at the same relative intensity when you wear a mask.” Some people also could experience lightheadedness during familiar workouts while masked, says Len Kravitz, a professor of exercise science at the University of New Mexico.
The steroid, dexamethasone, is the first treatment shown to reduce mortality in severely ill patients, according to scientists in Britain. The drug appears to reduce inflammation caused by the immune system, protecting the tissues. In the study, dexamethasone reduced deaths of patients on ventilators by one-third, and deaths of patients on oxygen by one-fifth.
The coronavirus emergency relief package gives many American workers paid leave if they need to take time off because of the virus. It gives qualified workers two weeks of paid sick leave if they are ill, quarantined or seeking diagnosis or preventive care for coronavirus, or if they are caring for sick family members. It gives 12 weeks of paid leave to people caring for children whose schools are closed or whose child care provider is unavailable because of the coronavirus. It is the first time the United States has had widespread federally mandated paid leave, and includes people who don’t typically get such benefits, like part-time and gig economy workers. But the measure excludes at least half of private-sector workers, including those at the country’s largest employers, and gives small employers significant leeway to deny leave.
So far, the evidence seems to show it does. A widely cited paper published in April suggests that people are most infectious about two days before the onset of coronavirus symptoms and estimated that 44 percent of new infections were a result of transmission from people who were not yet showing symptoms. Recently, a top expert at the World Health Organization stated that transmission of the coronavirus by people who did not have symptoms was “very rare,” but she later walked back that statement.
Touching contaminated objects and then infecting ourselves with the germs is not typically how the virus spreads. But it can happen. A number of studies of flu, rhinovirus, coronavirus and other microbes have shown that respiratory illnesses, including the new coronavirus, can spread by touching contaminated surfaces, particularly in places like day care centers, offices and hospitals. But a long chain of events has to happen for the disease to spread that way. The best way to protect yourself from coronavirus — whether it’s surface transmission or close human contact — is still social distancing, washing your hands, not touching your face and wearing masks.
A study by European scientists is the first to document a strong statistical link between genetic variations and Covid-19, the illness caused by the coronavirus. Having Type A blood was linked to a 50 percent increase in the likelihood that a patient would need to get oxygen or to go on a ventilator, according to the new study.
The unemployment rate fell to 13.3 percent in May, the Labor Department said on June 5, an unexpected improvement in the nation’s job market as hiring rebounded faster than economists expected. Economists had forecast the unemployment rate to increase to as much as 20 percent, after it hit 14.7 percent in April, which was the highest since the government began keeping official statistics after World War II. But the unemployment rate dipped instead, with employers adding 2.5 million jobs, after more than 20 million jobs were lost in April.
States are reopening bit by bit. This means that more public spaces are available for use and more and more businesses are being allowed to open again. The federal government is largely leaving the decision up to states, and some state leaders are leaving the decision up to local authorities. Even if you aren’t being told to stay at home, it’s still a good idea to limit trips outside and your interaction with other people.
Common symptoms include fever, a dry cough, fatigue and difficulty breathing or shortness of breath. Some of these symptoms overlap with those of the flu, making detection difficult, but runny noses and stuffy sinuses are less common. The C.D.C. has also added chills, muscle pain, sore throat, headache and a new loss of the sense of taste or smell as symptoms to look out for. Most people fall ill five to seven days after exposure, but symptoms may appear in as few as two days or as many as 14 days.
If air travel is unavoidable, there are some steps you can take to protect yourself. Most important: Wash your hands often, and stop touching your face. If possible, choose a window seat. A study from Emory University found that during flu season, the safest place to sit on a plane is by a window, as people sitting in window seats had less contact with potentially sick people. Disinfect hard surfaces. When you get to your seat and your hands are clean, use disinfecting wipes to clean the hard surfaces at your seat like the head and arm rest, the seatbelt buckle, the remote, screen, seat back pocket and the tray table. If the seat is hard and nonporous or leather or pleather, you can wipe that down, too. (Using wipes on upholstered seats could lead to a wet seat and spreading of germs rather than killing them.)
If you’ve been exposed to the coronavirus or think you have, and have a fever or symptoms like a cough or difficulty breathing, call a doctor. They should give you advice on whether you should be tested, how to get tested, and how to seek medical treatment without potentially infecting or exposing others.
If you’re sick and you think you’ve been exposed to the new coronavirus, the C.D.C. recommends that you call your healthcare provider and explain your symptoms and fears. They will decide if you need to be tested. Keep in mind that there’s a chance — because of a lack of testing kits or because you’re asymptomatic, for instance — you won’t be able to get tested.
“The whole world is battling this,” Mr. Abu Jama added. “This is a disease that doesn’t tell the difference between anybody, any religion, any gender. But you put that aside. We work together, we live together. This is our life.”
“The whole world is battling this,” Mr. Abu Jama added. “This is a disease that doesn’t tell the difference between anybody, any religion, any gender. But you put that aside. We work together, we live together. This is our life.”
Mr. Abu Jama said he’d had his aging mother in mind as he prayed: She is frail, and he has been keeping his distance from her even though they live under the same roof. Mr. Mintz said he had asked God “to let me see the end, the good end. Because I know that it’s a good end. And I hope to be there.”
Mr. Abu Jama said he’d had his aging mother in mind as he prayed: She is frail, and he has been keeping his distance from her even though they live under the same roof. Mr. Mintz said he had asked God “to let me see the end, the good end. Because I know that it’s a good end. And I hope to be there.”
