Protecting yourself from possible second wave of COVID-19

LAKE MARY, Fla. - Top health officials are warning of a possible second wave of COVID-19 in the winter time.

In an interview with the Washington Post, CDC director Robert Redfield said the second wave could be more devastating as it would clash with flu season.

Orlando doctor Jason Littleton said the two together could possibly set the stage for a devastating situation.

“While we do have a vaccine for the flu and we do have medication for the flu, again, we don’t have anything for the coronavirus,” he said.

He said research gathered now will be critical in determining how prepared we’ll be for an influx.

“I think retrospectively we’re going to get a lot of data out of this time and that’s gonna go forward to help us in 2021, 2022 so on and so forth and we’re gonna learn from this experience,” he said. 

He hopes by then we’ll have more evidence on which medications work and which don’t for COVID-19.

While he doesn’t think a vaccine would be ready by then, he said communities should focus on protecting the high-risk population and continue prevention efforts such as increasing PPE equipment and continuing social distancing.

So how can you protect yourself?

Dr. Littleton said staying on top of your health is key.

“Make sure that we’re taking care of underlying conditions. Being consistent with seeing our doctors. Being consistent with complying with the medications,” he explained.

He also urges you to get a flu shot.

“If you’re working on one illness and another illness sneaks up like COVID-19 that could be devastating for someone, so getting a flu shot is definitely a must,” he said.