Dripping Life May 21

Although I hope to never have an occasion to use them again, during the current pandemic, I find myself using certain new words and phrases which have osmosed into my vocabulary because of our current war against the infectious disease called COVID-19.

Depending on you experience, vocation, and outside interests, you may already use some of these words regularly…and you’re likely to know even more words in addition to what I have on my list.

One more observation: I marvel at how quickly these pandemic-related words have gained every-day usage in my own spoken and written language. What about you?

1. Animal-human interface - Pathogens are often transmitted from animals to humans ‘accidentally.’ For example, transmission occurs when humans eat infected meat or drink water contaminated with animal feces. 

2. Asymptomatic - When a patient is a carrier of an illness but does not show symptoms. People are thought to be most contagious for COVID-19 when they are most symptomatic, according to the CDC, although researchers are still investigating how its spread might be possible at other times, including during the incubation period (called “pre-symptomatic transmission”) and even after symptoms have resolved. 

3. CDC — The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is a federal agency that serves as the leading national public health institute of the United States. 

4. Cluster - A collection of cases occurring in the same place at the same time. In the U.S. in February and March, early clusters of COVID-19 developed in California, New York, and Washington state.

5. Community-spread - When a virus is detected in a person who doesn’t know how they got it. In the case of the novel coronavirus, community transmission in the United States was detected when people tested positive who had not recently traveled to China or other areas where the virus is spreading.

6. Contact-tracing - A method for tracking and containing the spread of infectious diseases. When a person is identified with a contagious infection, public health officials ask the person to generate a list of their contacts by asking about the person’s recent activities and relationships with those they’ve been in droplets contact with during the incubation period of the illness.

7. Coronavirus - A type of common virus that causes respiratory illnesses. There are many varieties of coronavirus. (We are assured by the CDC that coronavirus has no relationship with Corona Beer. So drink up, it’s OK.)

8. Coronababies - babies conceived during a prolonged period of quarantine and born exactly nine months after the quarantine, blackout or extreme weather. 

9. COVID-19 - Coronavirus that was first seen in 2019. It’s official name is “SARS-CoV-2,” and was first isolated in a laboratory in 2019, according the CDC website. It has also been referred to as “Wuhan coronavirus,” and “China coronavirus,” based on its origin in Wuhan China. In texting and social media, it’s usually just abbreviated “covid.”

10. Covidiot - A blend of COVID-19 and idiot, covidiot is a slang insult for someone who disregards healthy and safety guidelines about the novel coronavirus. Some signs of covidiocy are: not washing your hands regularly, hanging out in groups of people, standing within six feet of a stranger at the grocery, hoarding items like toilet paper and hand sanitizer.

11. Droplet transmission - A form of direct transmission, this is a spray containing large, short-range aerosols (tiny particles suspended in air) produced by sneezing, coughing, or talking. Droplet transmission occurs—in general and for COVID-19—when a person is in close contact with someone who has respiratory symptoms. 

12. Epidemic - Sudden increase in the number of cases of a disease, above what is typically expected in a particular area. COVID-19 is thought to have reached epidemic proportions in China in mid-January. 

13. Essential workers – Those who still work during a pandemic because they are needed, including of course the front-line workers – police, bankers, sanitation workers, etc. 

14. Epidemiologist - A public health expert who studies the spread, patterns, control and distribution of illnesses in the population.

15. Flattening the curve - The idea of slowing the spread of a disease like Covid-19 (by sheltering-in-place, wearing masks, washing hands and avoiding crowds) so hospitals can accommodate the patient flow. There may not be fewer cases in total, but there are the same number of cases over a longer period of time.

16. Front-line workers – Nurses, doctors, EMTs, other medical personnel, firefighters, law enforcement and others who respond in a health crisis.

17. Herd immunity - The opposite notion of flattening the curve, where you send everyone out to catch the disease until we become immune. Sweden has been trying this.

18. High-risk group - For the novel coronavirus, high-risk groups include: people over 60 years of age; anyone who has serious chronic medical conditions, such as heart disease, diabetes or lung conditions; those with weakened immune systems.

19. Hot spot - Area where numerous cases of disease have been diagnosed and are being treated.

20. Hunkering down - Staying at home to avoid contagious disease (in some cases, avoiding extreme cold or icy conditions.) Spending free time at home during the coronavirus, especially with a romantic partner while marathoning streaming services.

21. Isolation - People who are ill are isolated from those who are healthy. This usually happens in a hospital, where specialized equipment makes it easier to contain the spread of a contagious illness. 

22. Incubation Period - time between when a person is exposed to a virus and the appearance of the first symptoms. The incubation period for the novel coronavirus, while still unknown, is estimated between 2 and 14 days with symptoms usually appearing about 5 days after exposure. 

23. Mask - A covering for the nose and mouth, attached to the wearer over the ears. Generally worn as protection by First Responders, medical personnel, around highly infectious patients, in operating rooms and to protect others from disease, i.e., older individuals, those with compromised immune systems and newborns.

24. N95 Mask - Respirator masks, also called N95 masks, are close-fitting masks made from cloth-like filter material that protects wearers from inhaling infectious particles.

25. Novel coronavirus - A virus that has not been seen before. Although there have been many other types of coronavirus before, not this one, Covid-19.

26. Pandemic - When an epidemic that has spread over several countries or continents, impacting many who have little or no pre-existing immunity to it.

27. Phases of a pandemic - The CDC recognizes six stages to a pandemic—it starts with an investigation phase, followed by recognition, initiation, and acceleration phases, which is when it peaks. Then, comes a deceleration phase, when the rate of infection decreases. Finally, there is a preparation phase, where the pandemic has abated, and public health officials monitor virus activity and prepare for possible additional waves of infection.

28. PPE- Personal protective equipment is specialized clothing or gear used to prevent contact with infectious or hazardous materials. PPE to protect users from exposure to the coronavirus includes gloves, gowns, surgical masks, respirators, face shields and goggles.

29. PUI (Person under investigation) - Persons under investigation (PUI) are those with symptoms of COVID-19 or possible exposure to the virus who are being tested by public health authorities. PUIs may have a positive test result, which would usually lead to quarantine or isolation, or a negative result.

30. Quarantine-shaming - That’s slang for publicly criticizing someone for not following health and safety guidelines (quarantine being a shorthand for policies in place requiring people to stay at home except where necessary in many places across the country and world).

31. Quarantine versus self-quarantine versus isolation versus self-isolation – People are put into quarantine when they are not sick, but have been (or may have been) exposed to a disease, to help stop the spread. Self-quarantine is when someone isn’t ordered to go into quarantine but does so out of caution. A person who is infected with a disease and is infectious is isolated from healthy people to stop the spread. People who say they are self-isolating may or may not be infected with the disease. 

32. SIP - Shelter-in-place.

33. Social distancing - Arguably the most important measure to contain the spread of a virus, especially when it has outpaced contact tracing, involves intentionally maintaining distance from others in order to reduce the likelihood of spread of the illness.

34. Ventilator - Machine that helps people breathe….and there weren’t enough of them in Italy. Or they were in the wrong places in other countries, or broken. But we heard a lot about them.

35. Zoom-bombing - This is when uninvited guests to a virtual meeting disrupt it with various obscene, violent, or offensive images or words. (See #10 Covidiot above.)

36. Zumping - A blend of dump and Zoom (the popular video service), zumping is when you break up with someone over a video conferencing service. At least they didn't just text? (Hey, you can do better, anyway).

I’m assuming we’ll be adding more words from the pandemic world to our vocabularies until a vaccine is available and our fear of coronavirus goes away. Until that time, feel free to send suggestions for additions to this list. From the looks of things, we’ll have plenty of time…unfortunately.