What is COVID-19?

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is defined as an illness caused by a novel coronavirus called Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), which was first identified in the middle of an outbreak of respiratory illness cases in Wuhan City, Hubei Province, China in late 2019. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), COVID-19 spreads primarily through droplets of saliva or discharge from the nose and mouth when an infected person coughs or sneezes. Most people infected with COVID-19 will experience mild to moderate respiratory illness and recover without requiring special treatment. However, people over the age of 60, and particularly those with risk factors such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes, chronic respiratory disease, and cancer, are more likely to develop serious illness that may require hospitalization.

Important Vaccine Information

COVID-19 vaccines are a safe and effective method to keep people from contracting COVID-19 and to limit the severity of COVID illness if contracted. Vaccines help to teach our immune systems to recognize and protect against viruses, and in the case of the various COVID-19 vaccines currently available, this is done through two different methods: messenger RNA (mRNA) vaccines and carrier vaccines.

Messenger RNA vaccines, such as those produced by Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna, deliver a small section of genetic code from the COVID-19 virus to host cells in the body, providing instructions to those host cells to make copies of the spike proteins seen on the COVID-19 virus in order to an immune response within the body. This leads to the creation of antibodies and memory cells that protect against future exposure to the virus. These vaccines are administered in two separate doses, typically taken between 3-4 weeks apart.

Carrier vaccines, such as the Johnson & Johnson and Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccines, introduce a harmless adenovirus into the body which carries the genetic code needed to produce a spike protein and elicit an immune response, leading to the creation of antibodies and memory cells. These vaccines are administered in a single dose.

Regardless of vaccine type, all COVID-19 vaccines currently available have high efficacy rates (between 64% and 96%) and have proven to be effective in limiting COVID-19 infections, and more importantly, limiting severe illness, hospitalization, and death.

Vaccines are currently being administered by the Ministry of Public Health (MoPH) in Lebanon. To learn more about vaccine availability, your eligibility to receive a vaccine, and to register to receive a vaccine, please visit the MoPH’s COVID vaccine platform at https://covax.moph.gov.lb/impactmobile/vaccine.

COVID-19 Prevention & Best Practices

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), the Center for Disease Control (CDC), and many other global health authorities, several measures can and should be taken by the public in order to limit the spread of COVID-19. These include:

1. Social Distancing: maintaining at least 1 meter of distance between yourself and others helps to limit the amount of saliva droplets transmitted from one person to another.

2. Wearing a Mask or Face Covering: wearing a mask not only helps to keep you safe from potential infection from others, but it also keeps those around you safe if you happen to have an asymptomatic case of COVID-19 and are unaware that you are infected.

3. Avoiding closed, crowded, or small spaces: being in close contact with large groups of people increase the risk of transmission, and even more so when done in closed or poorly ventilated spaces. If you would like to have social contact with others, try to do so in open, outdoor spaces, while also practicing social distancing.

4. Practicing good hygiene: make sure to wash your hands thoroughly with soap and water or with alcohol-based hand sanitizer several times throughout the day. Avoid touching your mouth, nose, and eyes, and make sure to cover your mouth and nose with your elbow bent or with a tissue when sneezing or coughing to avoid widespread disbursement of droplets.

What To Do if You Start to Feel Symptoms

COVID-19 symptoms can range from mild to severe. The most common symptoms include fever, dry cough, and fatigue, and less common symptoms include a loss of smell and taste, muscle and body aches, sore throat, headache, nasal congestion, skin rash, red eyes, and diarrhoea.

If you start to experience mild symptoms, such as a cough, headache, or a low-grade fever, stay home and self isolate for a period of 14 days. If possible, avoid all contact with others and try to have someone bring you the supplies you need. If you need to leave your home, make sure to wear a mask, practice social distancing, and wash/sanitize your hands as frequently as possible.

If you start to experience more severe symptoms such as a fever, persistent cough, and difficulty breathing, seek medical attention immediately. Make sure to call or to have someone call the hospital prior to your visit to ensure they take all the necessary precautions prior to your arrival.

COVID-19 Services at LMC

Currently, LMC provides laboratory diagnostics for COVID-19 (including PCR and antibody testing) and has two dedicated COVID-19 units equipped with a total of 19 beds to treat patients that require hospitalization. Our new state-of-the-art molecular lab is equipped with FDA-approved Thermo Fisher Scientific devices which are capable of producing highly reliable results in a very short period of time.

LMC continues to follow the highest level of safety precautions as we monitor COVID-19 in Lebanon and worldwide. Our medical center is always available to provide patients with safe and reliable care. For this reason, we are implementing numerous safety initiatives to guarantee the safety and wellbeing of our patients, staff, and visitors. These include, but are not limited to:

• All people inside the hospital must wear masks at all times

• Anyone entering the hospital is screened for COVID-19 symptoms

• All patients are tested for COVID-19 prior to hospital admission and 48 hours prior to having surgery or any procedure

• Staff showing any symptoms related to COVID-19 are excluded from work and are referred to clinicians for further medical evaluation

• Patients who are suspected of having COVID-19 are immediately separated from other patients in the hospital

• Our medical team responsible for treating COVID-19 patients are required to wear personal protective equipment (PPE) to help prevent the spread of COVID-19

• Surfaces and equipment are thoroughly cleaned and disinfected using products that are effective against a range of bacteria and viruses, including the coronavirus

• Alcohol-based hand sanitizer is always available throughout the hospital premises

• The number of people entering the medical center is minimized and physical distancing in all areas is practiced

For more information about our COVID-19 services, please contact us.