Guide in times of pandemic: What if I get sick?

Another danger of this pandemic is that you are almost “forbidden” to get sick. The reason is that many hospitals are completely saturated by the number of SARS-CoV-2 patients being treated. This has a double negative consequence. On the one hand it makes it more dangerous to go to health centers and hospitals, as it is easier for you to get infected. And on the other hand, being so saturated the attention you receive will not be the same as what you might have in other circumstances.

And that involves any type of disease or health problem, not just those related to Covid-19. In fact, there has been a small increase in deaths not related to the coronavirus at this time. The reason is this saturation of hospitals that have caused some cases that could be positively settled in other cases, now could lead to certain complications.

However, if you have any kind of considerable problem, you should not neglect it and avoid going to health facilities. There has also been an alarming decline in medical appointments in patients even with severe pathologies such as heart, etc., because they are afraid to go to hospitals because they believe they can spread. The truth is that the sanitary ware has enabled clean areas separated from the “dirty” where coronavirus patients are cared for in order to reduce possible infections.

Others want to hold up at home as much as possible to avoid further collapsing hospitals. And doubts arise as to whether what they suffer is important enough to go or not. All these doubts should be clarified by this guide.

Know if I should call emergencies

Here you should differentiate between several situations to be able to evaluate whether or not you should call emergencies in case you find some kind of symptom:

• Coronavirus symptoms: If you have symptoms compatible with SARS-CoV-2 infection, such as cough, fever, sore throat, diarrhea, or shortness of breath, the first thing to evaluate is whether it is for Covid-19 or something different.
  • I am asthmatic or allergic: if you have asthma or allergy, especially now in spring you will feel some compatible symptoms such as shortness of breath, or breathing problems. But in no case does it produce a fever. Therefore, it is a determining factor in whether it could be coronavirus or not. Also, if you get worse when going out on the street and being more exposed to pollen, then it’s safe allergy. Another key is to see if symptoms remit or improve with antihistamines, because if it is allergy they will. If you are allergic, you should not call emergencies beyond maintaining your usual routine of care. Sometimes looking for your symptoms online or hypochondria can lead you to think it’s something different from what it really is.
  • Other cases: If you don’t have asthma or diagnosed allergy, it can be from a conventional cold or flu to other problems. It doesn’t have to be Covid-19. However, if you see that the fever is increasing, symptoms don’t go away within two or three days, and even worse, you should go to a health facility to be evaluated.
• Other symptoms: If symptoms are mild, such as a transient headache, you should not go to emergencies to avoid collapsing with problems that are not serious. However, if you have other more severe symptoms such as chest pain or tightness, fainting, very severe abdominal pain, bleeding, etc., they could be indicating serious problems that need immediate assistance (heart attack, severe infections or tumors, appendicitis,…). For any worrying symptoms do not hesitate to call emergencies.

Remember not to self-medicate or avoid important medical appointments if you have any serious pathology. Not going to the hospital for fear could have dire consequences.

Phone numbers to call

In each community in Spain, one or more phones have been enabled to call emergencies by Covid-19 or for emergencies. Remember that in case of doubt, if you have symptoms of SARS-CoV-2, you should not call 061 or 112 to not congestion those emergency phones. Better call the attention phones of your CC.AA. where they will give you guidelines or attend if you are suspected of having coronavirus.

Those available phones are:

• Andalusia: 955 545 060
• Aragon: —
• Canary Islands: 900 112 061
• Cantabria: 112 or 061
• Castilla León: 900 222 000
• Catalonia: —
• Community of Madrid: 900 102 112
• Navarra Regional Community: 948290 290
• Valencian Community:900 300 555 Extremadura
• :— Galicia
• :— Balearic Islands
• :— La
• Rioja:941 298 333 Region
• of Murcia:900 121 212
• Basque Country: 900 203 050
• Principality of Asturias: —

Buy medicines during confinement

Going to the usual health center to be prescribed a medicine is not a good option, besides that in some places this charge has been passed via telematics so as not to have to go and go to a source of contagion. It does not work the same in all communities, although some country-wide measures have been adopted as a contingency plan. This facilitates access to prescribed treatments with the necessary sanitary guarantees, but without having to attend in person.

Measures to make the provision of medicines more flexible in each CC.AA. would look like this:

• Andalusia: SAS has also facilitated the collection of medicines through its Health Respond app. From it you can do everything from managing appointments, renewing recipes, and even getting information about SARS-CoV-2.
• Aragon: has also decided on long-lasting 90-day treatments via electronic prescription.
• Balearic Islands: has a double way, one would be to withdraw treatment in advance with 15 days in the pharmacy or automatically extend 2 months for chronic patients.
• Cantabria: eliminates the need for prescription or treatment sheet to remove medication from the pharmacy, instead it does it with an electronic prescription with the health card and a PIN.
• Catalonia: Therapeutic plans are extended in chronic patients to avoid having to go more frequently for the prescription.
• Castilla y León: has a new procedure to avoid contacts and contagions similar to the previous ones.
• Community of Madrid: in this case they have also opted for 90 day prescriptions in chronic cases requiring the same long-term treatment.

Also, you should know that many pharmacies have started the delivery of medicines at home so that people don’t have to go. This is especially important for the elderly or people who have mobility problems and who are alone right now. An example of such services is the Pharmacius app that you can download for free on Google Play for Android and buy what you need.

Telematic medical assistance

Apart from prescriptions, you’re probably wondering about possible medical assistance completely telematically. Increasingly safe private admit these types of virtual appointments that prevent the patient from moving to the clinic. That way, from home you can watch via video call/phone call and thus “pass consultation” in the most efficient way.

The Spanish Society of Internal Medicine (SEMI) and the Spanish Society of Family and Community Medicine (SEMIFYC) have joined the DKV group’s #MédicosfrentealCovid initiative to enable everyone with this insurance to have an altruistic online clinical advice. In their spare or quarantine time they will be able to care for patients in order to decongest hospital emergencies and reduce Covid-19 infections.

There are also many platforms and apps proliferating where you can find experts such as psychologists and coach who can help you in these hard moments via Skype or from the service’s app’s own tracks. So you can have an expert anywhere, when you need it. An example of this is iFeelOnline. If you’ve lost your job, or a family member right now, you can go to this type of telematic assistance to avoid getting around.