BATON ROUGE - As of Wednesday, March 4, the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) has taken the lives of nine individuals in the United States, and Louisiana officials are doing all they can to protect residents from succumbing to the illness.

Most agree that one of the best ways to protect members of the community is to arm them with knowledge about COVID-19; officials want locals to be aware of the steps they should take to avoid infection and how to spot symptoms that might indicate possible contamination.

In this regard, Our Lady of the Lake Regional Medical Center’s Director of Infection Prevention, Dr. Catherine O’Neal held a special coronavirus business briefing during which she discussed the latest updates on the virus, how it might impact local businesses, and what employers should do to prepare.

During her lecture, Dr. O'Neal explained that coronavirus has been in existence for at least three decades, but the novel (new) version of coronavirus is different in that it affects a host's respiratory system.

She went on to explain that people who feel ill should work from home instead of showing up at work.

Dr. O'Neal urged employers to make sure employees don't feel guilty about staying home when they're not well.

She also encouraged everyone to avoid touching their face, hugging, and to wear gloves when possible.

Those who feel they may have contaminated coronavirus should wear a mask, contact their doctor, and utilize tele-medicine services.     

Dr. O'Neal's lecture was held Wednesday morning at OLOL's Heart & Vascular Institute Lecture Hall.

Click the link below to view Dr. O'Neal's entire address. 

Louisiana officials say that at this time only one person in the state has been tested for coronavirus and their results came back negative.