Since its emergence in late 2019, the novel coronavirus/COVID-19/SARS-CoV-2 has swept across the world at an alarming rate. On March 11, 2020, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the virus a pandemic. While the pace of the virus’ spread has overwhelmed health systems around the world, most of those infected experience mild symptoms. Fever and dry cough are the most common symptoms. However, some populations are at elevated risk, including older adults, people in long-term care or nursing facilities, and those with certain pre-existing medical conditions, especially if not well controlled.
The virus is spread via droplets (via sneezes and coughs from those infected) and may be spread in other ways. Prevention can take many forms, including hand washing, not touching one’s face, and social distancing. The immediate goal of these prevention steps is to slow the spread of disease - this will help protect health systems from becoming critically overwhelmed. More is being learned about this virus every day; the below resources offer the most up-to-date information.
DataHaven Resources
DataHaven is collecting and archiving public data related to COVID-19 in Connecticut, and publishing original analyses of Connecticut COVID-19 data as well as data based on large-scale surveys of randomly-selected residents throughout the state. Our reports, data dashboard, and other resources document and describe health conditions, access to care, and social and economic well-being and equity throughout the state's neighborhoods that can help communities respond to the pandemic. Please contact us with questions.
Click here for a list of all DataHaven pages specific to COVID-19 data.
Other Connecticut Resources
- The Connecticut COVID-19 portal posts data updates on the virus situation in Connecticut, including the number and location (county) of coronavirus patients. It also provides links to specific information and resources for families, schools, businesses, travel, hospitals, nursing homes and more.
- In addition to daily updates, CTDPH maintains more comprehensive weekly data analyses that include data by gender, age, race and ethnicity. In April 2020, CTDPH also released a special data summary of race and ethnicity data grouped by town.
- Yale New Haven Health is offering a call center for any questions about COVID-19. They can be reached at 203-688-1700 (or toll-free at 833-484-1200). The link also provides answers to commonly asked questions regarding COVID-19 and the flu. Hartford HealthCare has a similar resource page, and a hotline at 860-972-8100 (or toll-free 833-621-0600), as do other health care providers.
- The Connecticut State Department of Consumer Protection has published helpful warnings concerning scammers and false information related to COVID-19.
- The City of New Haven has a COVID-19 hub with regularly-updated local information and maps. Other cities and towns with similar pages include Stamford, Bridgeport, Waterbury, and others.
- Yale University has created a detailed site with news and resources geared towards the academic community titled Research, Clinical, and Data-Driven Responses to COVID-19. Yale also has a dashboard with daily statistics, including results from recent testing programs. Other universities, such as UConn, have similar sites.
National Resources
CDC: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
- The CDC provides a variety of resources in their large FAQs portal. This includes information on how the virus spreads, dangers of stigma, how to protect oneself, testing for COVID-19, funerals, pets, and more.
- The CDC’s coronavirus website contains information on symptoms, prevention and treatment. Factsheets in Spanish are here and here.
- CDC’s guidelines and resources for travel are found here.
- Check and Record Everyday Booklet provides recommendations for those traveling from China on how to monitor health (in English and Chinese).
Other
The New York Times offers an up-to-date map of COVID-19 cases in the United States.
Moody’s Analytics is tracking the economic impact of COVID-19.
Johns Hopkins University hosts a live data tracker on cases of COVID-19 across the world.
The World Health Organization’s (WHO) COVID-19 website includes practical tips around how to protect yourself, travel advice, and an FAQ.
