UCLA In the News lists selected mentions of UCLA in the world’s news media. Some articles may require registration or a subscription to view. See more UCLA In the News.
Understanding sick leave amid the outbreak | KTLA-TV
“There have been predictions now for quite a few years that we would have a pandemic like this. Sadly, many of those warnings have been ignored because people hesitate to invest in public health and prevention when there’s not a crisis,” UCLA’s Dr. Jody Heymann said. “One area where we lag far behind the rest of the world, and it’s serious, is paid sick leave.… Why does that matter so much? It matters because that prevents spread. When people get sick, they stay home if they have sick days.”
How do you shelter in place when you don’t have a home? | The New Yorker
Public-health scholars, such as Randall Kuhn, a professor at UCLA’s Fielding School of Public Health, have argued that once the virus reaches the homeless population, it could ravage that community; this, in turn, would increase infection in the general population. For everyone’s sake, it is important to protect the homeless.
How to care for someone with COVID-19 | Los Angeles Times
Say your spouse or roommate is showing symptoms or has tested positive for COVID-19. First, isolate that person. If you can, put that person in a separate bedroom with a separate bathroom. Make sure the room has access to good airflow. “The idea here is they’re not just walking around everyplace,” said Robert Kim-Farley, a UCLA professor of epidemiology and community health sciences. (Kim-Farley was also interviewed by Guardian (U.K.).)
Are gun stores essential businesses? | KPCC-FM’s “AirTalk”
“The Second Amendment secures our right to keep and bear arms. And that, the Supreme Court has said, means all of us have a right to have guns. Some of us already have then. Some of us, perhaps now because we’re worried, might want to buy them. And we have a Second Amendment right to do that,” said UCLA’s Eugene Volokh (approx. 1:55 mark).
We can respond to coronavirus locally, too | Washington Post Opinion
(Commentary written by UCLA’s Dr. Jeffrey Klausner) We should respond to those localized epidemics with actions designed to increase awareness, promote personal behavior change, case-finding through expanded testing and isolation of those infected. Quarantine of exposed individuals will have value where testing is not easily accessible, as would the protection of those most vulnerable through the limitation of visitors and decreased social interactions.
Personal precautions during the pandemic | KTLA-TV
“Ideally, if you want to be really safe, wipe down your packages, both outside packaging and inside packaging [and] throw those things out as soon as you can,” UCLA’s Dr. Anne Rimoin said (approx. 1:45 mark).
U.S. culture wars flare amid coronavirus crisis | Reuters
“It’s hard to imagine more compelling circumstances to restrict someone’s fundamental rights than a deadly epidemic,” said Adam Winkler, a law professor at the University of California, Los Angeles School of Law.
Mindfulness tips for coping with the pandemic | Los Angeles Times
Just try to focus on today, says Diana Winston, director of mindfulness education at the UCLA Mindful Awareness Research Center. “Most of the time, our minds are locked in the past and future,” Winston explains. “Mindfulness puts you in the moment. Most people are OK in the here and now. If you can put yourself in the present, you can handle difficult thinking.”
What to do if you have coronavirus symptoms | Los Angeles Times
Ideally, you should shelter in an isolated room with a private bathroom that no one else uses while you’re sick. A caregiver can bring you food, but should leave it at the door, said Dr. James A. McKinnell, an infectious disease physician who teaches at UCLA’s David Geffen School of Medicine. “Keep yourself supported by other people in your house as best you can,” he said. If you’re home alone, be sure someone you know well is checking in by phone at least a couple times a day, he said.
Mass transit systems desperate for financial relief | The Hill
“The virtues of public transit are precisely at odds with coping with the pandemic. That is, it’s good at moving a lot of people in the same direction at the same time, and we now have essentially a mandate to not move, to not have a lot of people together anywhere,” Brian D. Taylor, author and University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) professor of urban planning and public policy, said in an interview.
COVID-19 shopping tips | KCBS-TV
If you don’t want to deal with the aggravation of buying groceries on the regular during this trying time there are plenty of items to choose from that will last you weeks or longer. “We personally stocked up on non-perishables that are also highly nutritious including dried beans, canned beans, unsalted canned vegetables, whole-grain pasta, whole-grain bread you can freeze or refrigerate to extend its life, cereals, soy milks, almond milks, peanut butter (or alternative) and jelly,” advises [UCLA’s Dana] Hunnes.
COVID-19 forces park closures | KQED-FM
UCLA law professor Sean Hecht said it’s always the job of health officers to “take measures as may be necessary to prevent the spread of the disease or occurrence of additional cases.” When there’s a declared emergency, Hecht said health officers can “take any preventive measure that may be necessary to protect and preserve the public health from any public health hazard.”
Teens use TikTok to cope with coronavirus fears | Teen Vogue
Jena Lee, MD, a psychiatrist and clinical instructor at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, says laughter can improve people’s immune system. But she warns against a kind of “self-defeating humor,” saying not all laughs are medicinal. “It seems common sense that that kind of humor wouldn’t be helpful, but there’s actually data that shows that self-defeating humor is not as productive,” she says.
Wave of at-home coronavirus tests is dividing global regulators | Quartz
Serologic tests, which detect antibodies against SARS-CoV-2 in the blood, are a useful way to determine if someone had the virus, says Dr. Timothy Brewer, professor of epidemiology at the UCLA Fielding School of Public Health. Most tests even offer results in under an hour, and they require far less processing. But they inherently don’t have the same diagnostic power as a molecular test. “Because it takes time for the body’s immune system to generate antibodies against a specific pathogen, antibody tests may be negative early in the course of infection,” said Brewer. (Brewer is also quoted in Time.)