Protecting us from Covid-19 one year on
It feels like we've been living with Covid for a long time, but it was only a little over year ago that we had the first known case of a person contracting COVID-19. Only a few months later borders were closing and entire countries were going into lockdown.
Covid-19 is dangerous for a lot of reasons. Obviously it can be fatal but also it is not always clear when someone has the virus. Many of those who get the virus will never show any or many symptoms. Because of this they will think they are well and continue through their day as normal. Additionally, the period between when you contract the virus and when you start to show symptoms can be relatively long. During this period the person is still contagious. This has led to significant numbers having the virus without knowing they are sick.
To combat the inability to know who may or may not be sick most public health officials have recommended, and many jurisdictions have mandated, the wearing of masks. Masks with a rating lower than N95 will not provide much protection against contracting the virus. However if youhave the virus then wearing a mask it will greatly diminish your ability to spread the virus.
Working with COVID-19
For those working directly with COVID-19 patients, including health workers, an N95 mask is still highly recommended. Properly fit this type of mask will make a seal around the wearers mouth and nose preventing foreign material, including the virus, from getting to the wearers respiratory system.
In conjunction with masks good hygiene is important. As at the beginning of the pandemic officials emphasized the need to properly wash hands. This has not changed today.
Experts recommend the use of soap, but you can also use hand sanitizer when soap and water isn’t available. You should rub the soap on the skin for a full twenty seconds. You should also rub hand sanitizer for twenty seconds and then allow it to dry into the skin.
For more information about how you can prevent the spread of COVID-19 check out our website for articles on Detection, Protection, Decontamination, and Contact Tracing.
