https://www.npr.org/sections/coronavirus-live-updates/2020/07/18/892677119/world-sets-daily-record-in-new-coronavirus-cases

The study of nearly 65,000 people in South Korea suggests that school reopenings will trigger more outbreaks.

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The Latest: WHO posts 2nd daily record for new cases in row The World Health Organization is again posting a single-day record of new confirmed coronavirus cases. It announced 259,848 new cases on Saturday. The WHO on Friday posted more than 237,000... AP NEWS

The World Health Organization is again posting a single-day record of new confirmed coronavirus cases. It announced 259,848 new cases on Saturday.

The WHO on Friday posted more than 237,000 confirmed cases around the world. The back-to-back records come as many nations struggle with new waves of infections after loosening lockdown restrictions.

New studies clarify what drugs help, hurt for COVID-19 Fresh studies give more information about what treatments do or don’t work for COVID-19, with high-quality methods that give reliable results. British researchers on Friday published their... AP NEWS

LONDON --Fresh studies give more information about what treatments do or don’t work for COVID-19, with high-quality methods that give reliable results.

A guide to WHO’s guidance on COVID-19

There’s a lot of information out there about how governments, health professionals and the general public should respond to the COVID-19 pandemic. WHO has published guidance and advice every step of the way. 

During health emergencies like the COVID-19 pandemic, one of WHO’s most vital roles is to gather data and research from around the world, evaluate it, and then advise countries on how to respond.

More than 150 countries sign up for global vaccine plan LONDON (AP) — More than 70 rich countries have signed up to a global coronavirus vaccine initiative intended to ensure that any effective shots are fairly distributed around the world - but which... AP NEWS

 Associated Press   July 15, 2020

By Masria Cheng

Exclusive: Scientists examine whether this route enables infections at longer distances

Large virus-laden droplets from infected people’s coughs and sneezes fall to the ground within 1-2 metres. Photograph: Nick Gregory/Alamy

CLICK HERE - STUDY - medRxiv - The Potential role of Particulate Matter in the Spreading of COVID-19 in Northern Italy: First Evidence-based Research Hypotheses - April 17, 2020

theguardian.com - by Damian Carrington - April 24, 2020

Coronavirus has been detected on particles of air pollution by scientists investigating whether this could enable it to be carried over longer distances and increase the number of people infected.

The work is preliminary and it is not yet known if the virus remains viable on pollution particles and in sufficient quantity to cause disease.

A person in China scans a QR code with a smartphone to register their real name before getting off a bus in Wuhan, China. Zhang Chang/China News Service via Getty Images

The US is rolling out digital contact tracing. How has it been working in other countries?

vox.com - by Shirin Ghaffary - April 18, 2020

If and when lockdown restrictions are lifted in the US, would you agree to let the government anonymously track your interactions with people within a 6-foot radius to control the spread of Covid-19?

That’s an increasingly urgent question as President Trump and state governors debate how and when to safely reopen the US economy — and as technology is being touted as a solution that would help people reenter public life.

And tech giants are stepping up. Last week, Apple and Google announced a plan to turn phones into opt-in Covid-19 tracking machines that would, if all goes as planned, make it easier for health officials to identify and alert people if they’ve been exposed to the virus.

Battelle Memorial Institute's CCDS Critical Care Decontamination System uses a hydrogen peroxide vapor to decontaminate N95 respirators. The organization says that the process takes about 2½ and that masks can be cleaned and reused up to 20 times.Battelle Memorial Institute

nbcnews.com - by Didi Martinez, Brenda Breslauer and Stephanie Gosk - April 14, 2020

Late Monday, the Pentagon announced a $415 million contract to commission 60 decontamination systems that will allow millions of highly protective N95 face masks to be reused.

The system, which can process up to 80,000 masks per day, has been called a potential "game changer" for the front-line health care workers and first responders who rely on the masks, according to hospital officials concerned about a shortage of protective equipment to shield their staff from COVID-19.

But the story of how this system came to be is a testament to what can happen when a doctor and an engineer — who happen to be husband and wife — ask, "What if?"

kron4.com - by: Alexa Mae Asperin - April 9, 2020

Researchers in Finland have released a shocking simulation that apparently shows how respiratory droplets from just one cough in a grocery store can linger in the air for “several minutes” and travel across two aisles, possibly infecting other shoppers nearby with coronavirus.

Aalto University, the Finnish Meteorological Institute, VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland and the University of Helsinki studied how aerosolized particles released from the respiratory tract when coughing, sneezing or even talking flow through the air.

Preliminary results indicate that tiny particles carrying the coronavirus can linger in the air for longer than originally thought, reinforcing the importance of completely avoiding crowded spaces, or at the very least following social distancing guidelines.

(CLICK HERE - READ COMPLETE ARTICLE)

Dengue is transmitted by a bite from an infected Aedes aegypti mosquito. This is the same species that spreads Zika, Chikungunya and yellow fever. The most common symptoms of dengue are high fever, headaches and joint and muscle pain. (Photo by: BSIP/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)

forbes.com - by Daphne Ewing-Chow - December 31, 2019

In January 2019, the Caribbean Public Health Agency (CARPHA) warned the Caribbean region of an expected spike in dengue fever and called on communities to exercise caution and support the elimination of mosquito breeding sites to help combat the virus.

A full year later, the number of individuals in the Americas having contracted the mosquito-borne virus is approaching 3 million with at least 1,372 recorded deaths— the highest number of cases on record. The Pan American Health Organisation (PAHO) and other experts have pointed to climate change as one of the leading causes for the surge in numbers, with poor environmental management and increased adaptability of mosquitoes listed as other causes.

Lead Image: When Hurricane Maria struck Dominica in September 2017, more than 90 per cent of the island's structures were destroyed and leaves were ripped from trees. Today, the people of Dominica are rebuilding with the knowledge that climate change could mean a future of storms like Maria.  PHOTOGRAPH BY GALAXIID, ALAMY STOCK PHOTO

travelandleisure.com - by Cailey Rizzo - November 21 2019

When Hurricane Maria barreled through the Caribbean in September 2017, it destroyed 90 percent of the island of Dominica overnight. When the storm cleared, Dominica didn’t just want to rebuild. From the rubble, the island developed a new goal: to become the world’s first climate-resilient nation.

And, according to a new National Geographic report, the island is on track to do exactly that.

(CLICK HERE - READ COMPLETE ARTICLE)

Greta Thunberg addresses thousands of demonstrators in New York. Photograph: Lucas Jackson/Reuters

Young and old alike took to the streets in an estimated 185 countries to demand action

theguardian.com - by Sandra Laville and Jonathan Watts - September 20, 2019

Millions of people demonstrated across the world yesterday demanding urgent action to tackle global heating, as they united across timezones and cultures to take part in the biggest climate protest in history.

In an explosion of the youth movement started by the Swedish school striker Greta Thunberg just over 12 months ago, people protested from the Pacific islands, through Australia, across-south east Asia and Africa into Europe and onwards to the Americas . . .

 . . . Trade unions representing hundreds of millions of people around the world mobilised in support, employees left their workplaces, doctors and nurses marched and workers at firms like Amazon, Google and Facebook walked out to join the climate strikes . . . 

The right message at the right time from the right person can save lives. CDC’s Crisis and Emergency Risk Communication (CERC) draws from lessons learned during past public health emergencies and research in the fields of public health, psychology, and emergency risk communication. CDC’s CERC program provides trainings, tools, and resources to help health communicators, emergency responders, and leaders of organizations communicate effectively during emergencies.

CLICK HERE - Crisis & Emergency Risk Communication (CERC)

CLICK HERE - CERC Corner - Psychology of a Crisis

CLICK HERE - CERC Manual

CLICK HERE - CERC - Psychology of a Crisis (16 page .PDF document)