Actor Priyanka Chopra took to Instagram live to debunk confusion and myths around the coronavirus pandemic, which has managed to generate fear and anxiety around us. The actor, a goodwill ambassador for UNICEF, got in touch with health experts at WHO-- Dr Tedros and epidemiologist Maria Van Kerkhove to clarify doubts her followers had sent via Instagram. In the video that lasts for about 15-minutes, Chopra asks the experts if the virus is airborne. Van Kerkhove addressed this query and said that it is spread via droplets. When asked if a person can be infected by the virus once they recover from it, Van Kerkhove said, “We don’t have the full picture of this virus. We know that more than 100,000 people of the 400,000 cases have recovered. We are expecting that people who do get infected will develop an immune response.”
One of the first questions PeeCee and her husband Nick Jonas asked was that “I am type 1 diabetic and she (Priyanka) is asthmatic. We had fears about being exposed and what the effects would be for us. For anyone who is immune-compromised, what extra precautions should they take?” To this, Van Kerkhove said that anyone with diabetes, cardiovascular disease, chronic respiratory disease, cancer and people, who are above the age of 60 should limit social interactions.
“There are so much information circulating about Covid-19 and right now we’re all searching for clarity. My friends at @WHO and @glblctzn graciously brought the doctors working on the front lines here to give us answers straight from the experts,” Chopra wrote in the Instagram post, that featured the video.
Chopra also asked her followers to donate to WHO, to help them fight the pandemic.
Apart from reiterating the importance of social-distancing, the experts also said that it was important to wash hands at regular intervals and cough or sneeze into your elbow.
