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Dear Doctors,
Pls kindly advise:
1) What should public service workers manning the frontline do to keep themselves (& their family members) safe if they are handling a large number of public?
2) How to differentiate between nasal allergy/flu or cold/Covid-19?
3) How accurate are forehead temperate scanners? Some say they have a 1 degree celsius difference. What temperature is considered having a fever for forehead temperature scanner?
Thank you.
Pls kindly advise:
1) What should public service workers manning the frontline do to keep themselves (& their family members) safe if they are handling a large number of public?
2) How to differentiate between nasal allergy/flu or cold/Covid-19?
3) How accurate are forehead temperate scanners? Some say they have a 1 degree celsius difference. What temperature is considered having a fever for forehead temperature scanner?
Thank you.
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1) The best thing to do, will be to wear a mask which can be cloth-based and obtained at your local CC, in alignment with our country's latest recommendations. If you do develop symptoms of a flu, such as cough, sneezing, running nose, body aches, fever, etc - see a doctor early for a review for further assessment.
2) It may be difficult to differentiate the two without seeing a doctor for an examination in the current context, unless there is a clear precedence with an established diagnosis of nasal allergy and exposure to a known trigger just prior to the onset of symptoms. To save time, you may want to try having an initial conversation with a doctor online using apps like DoctorWorld that provide video-based consultations, and the attending doctor would be able to prescribe medications and have them delivered to you if you need them. Here is a link that shares more about this: https://www.todayonline.com/brand-spotlight/doctor-will-see-you-next-app
3) The current crisis has exposed inaccuracies of some of these thermometers and fundamental flaws in some non-contact thermometers sold online that consistently produce inaccurate readings. As a general rule of thumb, a temperature more than 37.5 is considered a fever regardless of device. Small variations may occur due to calibration settings and will be indicated on the device packaging. Use the “probe” type thermometers for an accurate measurement of oral or armpit temperature, which you can purchase from established brands such as Guardian.
Hope this helps!