El Dorado Hills first responders adopt new disinfecting protocols

When Henrico County Fire Department began to respond to calls for people exhibiting signs of coronavirus, they began utilizing recommendations of how best to stay safe. Although restrictive, this new playbook helps emergency responders stay safe by "limiting the number of responders that go into a facility" and encourages nursing homes to bring patients "as close to the ambulance entrance as possible."

For many jobs across the country, working from home is a fairly easy adaptation to cope with social distancing measures. But for many scientists who work in laboratories with ongoing research, a work from home solution does not quite fit. Labs and universities are finding ways to adapt and prioritize which experiments to put on hold.

As colleges and universities across the United States have shifted to online classes and shut down their campuses, not every student simply has the ability to move home. To help support these students, many of whom are low-income or international, the Stay Together Appalachian Youth Project began working with local communities to find housing for displaced students, as well as to provide other support like money or supplies.

Hong Kong and Singapore are being looked to as potential models of how to contain the coronavirus pandemic, but they also offer lessons about how to keep the frontline health care providers safe during an outbreak as well. From specific protocols about when the use of a N95 mask is necessary to a precise definition of what justifies "close contact," these two countries are showing that occupational exposure isn't necessarily a threat when dealt with properly and proactively.

Grocery stores across the United States frantically respond to the "panic buying" brought on by fear of the coronavirus quarantine. As Americans rapidly stock up on supplies, grocery stores expand their network of suppliers, working with farmers, restaurant distributors, and others to find creative solutions to the bottleneck problem of keeping food and goods on their shelves.

By running a network of 3-D printers, universities like USC and UCLA Extension, as well as volunteer firms and nonprofits mobilize their resources to create backup masks. The masks are more effective than basic disposable surgical masks, and serve as reserves for hospitals in the region. The network operates with the assistance of the Los Angeles Mayor’s office.

In Los Angeles, the city-led effort, Project Roomkey, is working to get 15,000 people experiencing homelessness into hotel rooms in the fight against COVID-19. Working with the LA Homeless Services Authority and state negotiators, partnerships with hotels are being developed and are already housing some of these individuals. While costing nearly $190 million, it is helping save lives and hopefully keeping hotels afloat.

A new initiative at St. John’s Health in Wyoming aimed at bettering people's health while saving the hospital money by combining wellness services with behavioral programs has shown promise but was put on hold due to the coronavirus pandemic. Instead of pausing the program in entirety, however, program administrators have instead adapted it for St. John's employees as a means of keeping staff healthy.

A change in communication policies and outreach procedures has helped the UR Medicine Home Care program retain employees during the coronavirus pandemic, despite increasingly difficult work conditions. Part of this effort has included leaders from the program committing to daily check-ins with staff members to discuss work and personal concerns and then addressing those concerns through actions such as implementing child care options.

The population of Dharavi, a slum in Mumbai, made the region a hotspot for coronavirus transmission, but local officials' aggressive action plan – which included testing, contact tracing, quarantine, and increased sanitation efforts – helped quell the spread of the virus. Although the process was challenging for local doctors and the shutdown of normal day-to-day routines had a negative impact on the region's economy, Dharavi has already been able to begin the process of reopening.