Contents
- Coronavirus: hand washing, a key measure to be respected
- Cough, sneezing and coronavirus: the elbow or the disposable tissue
- Coronavirus: distance yourself to limit the spread
- Coronavirus: isolate yourself and protect others from the first symptoms
- In video: 4 golden rules to protect yourself against winter viruses
Despite the measures taken to prevent the virus from entering the territory, the new coronavirus from China has indeed settled in France. To guard against this, the World Health Organization (WHO), like the French health authorities, recommend the use of “barrier” gestures. Although quite similar to those that we recommend during an epidemic of seasonal flu or gastro, these have some specificities and can be a little more drastic.
They affect doorknobs, flush toilets, elevator buttons, clothes, our face … Our hands are, whether we like it or not, vectors of multiple germs. Results, during an epidemic, regular and careful hand washing is more than recommended.
It is still necessary to do it well. Because it is not a question here of going “quickly and well done” with your hands under running water after having deposited a little soap. Hand washing to get rid of pathogens (bacteria, viruses, etc.) present on the skin is fairly formal if you want it to be really effective.
To do this, we will proceed in stages, namely:
- wet hands with clean water;
- soap your hands for 30 seconds, not forgetting any part (spaces between the fingers, palm, back of the hand, space under the nails by rubbing the tips of the fingers in the middle of the palm, and up to the wrists);
- rinse well with running water;
- dry hands preferably with disposable paper or allow to air dry.
Note that the use of a hydroalcoholic gel is only recommended when it is not possible to wash your hands with soapy water. It should therefore be reserved for occasional outdoor use, especially as some contain triclosan, an antibacterial classified as a proven endocrine disruptor. But in the absence of soapy water, especially when traveling, it troubleshoots and avoids being contaminated by the surfaces that you touch.
Because the coronavirus is transmitted by postilions and other droplets emitted during a sneeze or cough, it is essential to adopt the reflex to cough or sneeze in his elbow rather than in his hands or without any protection. You can also sneeze or cough in a disposable tissue, which should then be immediately discarded. If by accident we spontaneously cough into our hands, we go to the toilet to wash our hands, or we use a nut of hydroalcoholic solution.
To blow your nose as well, it is better to use disposable handkerchiefs, which will be thrown away immediately after use. They can be preferably chosen from recycled paper to limit the impact on the environment.
Unfortunately, our social habits are not the most adapted when circulating viruses that contract through the air or the skin (coronavirus, but also seasonal flu or gastroenteritis).
Handshakes, kisses, hugs and other hugs should be avoided in this period of the Covid-19 coronavirus epidemic, because these actions are likely to transmit the virus from one individual to another. Especially since the incubation period, period between contamination and the appearance of the first symptoms of Covid-19 is 14 days. Also a presumed non-infected person can very well carry the virus and therefore transmit it.
As a precaution, it is therefore advisable to be satisfied, for a time at least, with greetings from a distance.
In so-called “cluster” regions, where the occurrence of grouped, limited or localized cases with human-to-human transmission is to be deplored, employees are invited, when they can, to favor teleworking. Without falling into psychosis and exaggeration, closed meetings, the use of the elevator or places with a high concentration of people should also be avoided as much as possible, at least in the affected regions.
Note that the World Health Organization even goes so far as to advise maintaining a distance of at least one meter between yourself and anyone who coughs or sneezes.
The mask: to be reserved for people infected or likely to be
The use of the mask is not part of the “barrier” gestures recommended by the World Health Organization to protect against possible contamination. On the other hand, it is more than recommended for people who are already sick or likely to be sick, such as people who have had close and proven contact with an affected individual and health professionals. It is therefore better to avoid stocking them up in the absence of symptoms or risk, so that there is enough for the truly infected people. The Government indicates that dispensing pharmacies have been instructed to issue masks only to people with an indication.
If symptoms such as fever, cough and breathing difficulties occur, it is advisable not to go to the emergency room or to your doctor (at the risk of infecting other people), but to dial 15 (SAMU). There, a doctor will judge symptoms and how to proceed. We will also take care to stay at home and avoid close contact, especially with fragile people (individuals already suffering from chronic pathologies, elderly people, pregnant women, young children, etc.). In this specific case, wearing a mask is recommended, but the other “barrier” gestures should not be abandoned.
Sources and additional information:
- https://www.who.int/emergencies/diseases/novel-coronavirus-2019/advice-for-public
- https://www.gouvernement.fr/info-coronavirus
- https://twitter.com/MinSoliSante
In video: 4 golden rules to protect yourself against winter viruses
# Coronavirus # COVID19 | To protect yourself and others:
? Wash your hands regularly
? Cough in his elbow
? Use a disposable tissue
? Sick: wear a disposable mask
☎ Any questions? 0 800 130 000 (free call)
? https://t.co/0I8koxOdgqpic.twitter.com/AZLRKz3ccW
– Ministry of Solidarity and Health (@MinSoliSante) February 29, 2020