On March 12, 2020, the World Health Organization declared the global spread of novel coronavirus to be a pandemic. It is now absolutely essential that individuals take whatever steps they can to prevent the spread of COVID-19, which is the illness caused by the virus. By taking a few simple measures every day, people can reduce their risk of contracting or spreading the virus and potentially save lives.
Offices and workplaces are known to be places where people can easily transmit or pick up coronavirus, since people are grouped close together and must interact face-to-face. Every day, imagine how many people in an office touch the elevator buttons, doorknobs, surfaces in the cafeteria and computer keyboards.
In this article we’ve assembled a list of basic hygiene measures that people can engage in to minimize the risk of catching or spreading coronavirus in the workplace.
Work remotely whenever possible
Clearly, the best solution to avoid getting or transmitting coronavirus at work is to work from home. If you have a typical office job and do most of your work by email or over the phone, you should have no problem taking care of your daily tasks from the comfort of home. Most companies already have policies and procedures in place to allow employees to work remotely. Your technical support department can offer guidance and offer you solutions (such as a private VPN) in order to allow you to connect to your virtual workplace.
That being said, the nature of some jobs doesn’t allow for remote work. For example, people who work in restaurants, police officers, cashiers and many others do not have the option to work from home. These employees must take alternate measures to protect themselves and others.
Wash your hands frequently
Experts agree that regular and vigorous handwashing is one of the most effective ways to protect oneself from coronavirus while also helping to stop the spread of the virus. Hands must be washed frequently and most importantly, vigorously. A simple wash in cold water without soap is not effective. Here are handwashing recommendations from the Minister of Health and Social Services for Quebec:
- Wet your hands with warm water
- Apply soap
- Scrub your hands together for 15 – 30 seconds
- Wash all the surfaces of your hands, including your nails, thumbs and fingers
- Rinse your hands thoroughly
- Dry your hands carefully
- If possible, use a paper towel to turn off the tap
* Source : https://publications.msss.gouv.qc.ca/msss/fichiers/2012/12-207-04F.pdf
*Video :https://ici.radio-canada.ca/nouvelle/1650889/technique-lavage-mains-propagation-coronavirus
If soap and water are not available, use hand sanitizer with at least 60% alcohol to disinfect your hands.
Regularly disinfect your workstation
Whether you’re working from home or in the office, be sure to regularly disinfect and/or clean your workstation. Start by cleaning flat surfaces with a disinfectant wipe. Then use disinfectant cleaning products to wipe down your computer keyboard, your mouse and your phone.
You also need to disinfect everything you touch on a regular basis, including your pens, the armrests on your chair, your coffee cup, drawer handles, etc.
Avoid kissing and shaking hands
Kissing, obviously, must be curtailed for now. Coronavirus is easily transmitted from person to person via saliva droplets.
Shaking hands with a stranger, a friend, a colleague or a family member is also to be avoided. Coronavirus can be transmitted by hand-to-hand contact, especially if people are not washing their hands frequently and vigorously. If the virus is on your hands and you touch your face, you could contract the virus.
Avoid touching your face
As mentioned previously, COVID-19-causing coronavirus may be on your hands without you knowing it. If you touch your face with coronavirus on your hands, your risk of contracting the virus is higher. Avoiding touching your face is challenging : people can touch their face dozens of times a day without ever noticing, since it is an automatic gesture.
Isolate yourself if you have any symptoms
If you feel any symptoms of COVID-19 coming on, you must immediately isolate yourself for a period of 14 days. Even if you think it’s just a cold or an allergy, don’t take any chances.
Do not go to work if you have any symptoms of coronavirus infection!
The symptoms of COVID-19 include :
- Cough
- Fever
- Difficulty breathing (in serious cases)
* Source : https://www.quebec.ca/sante/problemes-de-sante/a-z/coronavirus-2019/#c46349
If you believe you’ve been infected with coronavirus, you must stay home and avoid all contact with others. You also need to alert people who you may have been in contact with recently and advise them to isolate themselves immediately.
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