LEE COUNTY, FL. — As businesses in Southwest Florida continue to open, some are concerned about the possibility of a second wave of COVID-19.
But how can we contain a second wave of the virus?
"As things start to open up, people are going to start moving around, so there is the potential for an increased spread of COVID," said Dr. Robert Hawkes, Director of the Physician Assistant Program at Florida Gulf Coast University.
Dr. Hawkes says the pace in which businesses reopen plays in a role in controlling the spread.
"By beginning slowly, we can get a big picture of do we see a large increase in the number of new cases," said Dr. Hawkes.
State officials have advised people to continue to follow CDC guidelines to prevent the spread.
Dr. Hawkes says it will come down to the community's cooperation.
"It's really important for people to wear their masks when they go out into public, while it may be a little inconvenient, it's really showing that it's helping decrease the spread," said Dr. Hawkes.
As an example, Hong Kong already experienced a second wave of COVID-19.
When the second wave hit after relaxing guidelines in February, the Hong Kong government took quick, aggressive action.
"They were really doing a large national quarantine, they were closing most of their facilities, they were prohibiting any outside travel," said Dr. Hawkes.
The second wave appears to have passed — it's reported Hong Kong hasn't had a case of local transmission in over two-weeks.
Dr. Hawkes says we're already following similar guidelines as Hong Kong.
"Certainly as we look at them as a guideline, we're continuing with social distancing, continuing people wearing face masks, decreasing the amount of travel," said Dr. Hawkes.
Now, with expanded testing capabilities in Southwest Florida, Dr. Hawkes says health officials will be able to monitor a potential second wave.
"If we see a large spike in the number of cases, as we're starting to loosen things up, certainly health officials will look at slowing down the reopening, or changing the process," said Dr. Hawkes.
