You must have heard a proverb, “Better to be safe than sorry”. And this proverb is somehow suitable for the current “Coronavirus” outbreak situation. We all are very tensed about the safety of our family members, including our own. But we should not get panicked and follow the guidelines religiously, recommended by World Health Organization (WHO) or our local medical practitioners.
But in real life, we face some hurdles while following these precautions at home having kids and old-aged family members. So, here are some practical solutions to these hurdles.
1. HURDLE:
Kids don’t understand the situation and hence don’t follow the safety guidelines properly
SOLUTIONS:
It is obvious that kids may not understand the seriousness of the current situation, but as a parent we should also think that they are too little to realize the consequence of this virus.
So here are some simple tips for parents.
a. Make the “hand-wash” activity interesting for kids by some jingles.
As recommended by WHO, we should wash our hand, regularly and thoroughly with soap and water. Also, by general hygiene process, we should wash our hand at least for 20 seconds. But the problem we face is to make our kids to follow these instructions regularly. So, teach any “hand-wash” song to your kid and make them sing it while washing their hands.
For example:
“Wash, wash, wash your hands Get them nice and clean Wash them on top Wash them on bottom and fingers in between Wash, wash, wash your hands Get them nice and clean Wash them on top Wash them on bottom and fingers in between”
You can also select any of your child’s favorite rhyme, like “Twinkle, twinkle”, “If you’re happy and you know it”, “Happy birthday to you” ,”Row,row,row your boat” etc.
b. If sometime child is reluctant, tell your kid, “let’s go and wash our hand”, instead of ordering them or yelling at them.
c. Self-monitor your kid’s hand wash activity in these situations-
i. after coming back home from outside
ii. before eating any food item
d. Talk to your child about the Coronavirus problem, as per their age.
For younger kid, explain them saying that some “Virus-monsters” are roaming outside who mainly attack our hand like “germs/bacteria”, so we need to kill them using soap and water.
e. Convince your kid to stay at home. Tell them that since outside we may not get soap and water to kill the “Virus-monsters”, so it’s better to be at home as much as possible. Buy some indoor-games or activities for your kids to play at home, to keep them busy at home. Allow some screen-time as well, with some educational videos.
f. Avoid taking your kids to crowded places, like parks, shopping malls etc.
2. HURDLE:
Keeping our HOME environment safe with precautionary measures
SOLUTIONS:
Use disinfectant spray/liquid/cleaner at home regularly
a. Wipe the main door latch and door-handle very often with disinfectant cleaner, as those are more vulnerable to virus.
b. Wipe the electric switchboard, which we first use after coming back home from outside, before washing our hands
c. Try to disinfect the stuffs brought from outside (shopping malls/shops) by wiping the packets if possible, before using it
d. Wipe your mobile phone or other digital devices very often, with facewipes, sanitizers or any other screen cleaning liquid
e. Change your clothes immediately after coming home from outside and keep that used cloth separately, and spray some disinfectant on it
f. If re-using woollen clothes, then put them under sun light for few hours, use disinfectant spray on it
3. HURDLE:
Impact on social life, and difficult to say “No” for any get-together
SOLUTIONS:
a. Try to avoid any social gatherings if possible, either at home or outside
b. Don’t meet people unless it’s very necessary for these days, talk over phone or connect via video-call
c. Don’t hesitate to say “No” for any meet-up planning. Saying “Yes” for the sake of not making other person angry or feel bad, is not a good idea in current pandemic situation
d. Even ask your “impromptu visitors” to wash their hands as soon as they come to your house. I am sure it will not sound rude to them as we all are aware of this difficult situation and all want to be safe.
e. Avail work-from-home facility in your workplace to avoid public areas like transportation, office areas, staffs, pedestrians etc.
f. Go for shopping only if it is necessary like household stuffs and groceries
g. Use alcohol-based hand sanitizer, whenever you need to go out for any household need
h. Maintain at least 1 metre (3 feet) distance between yourself and anyone who is coughing or sneezing.
4. HURDLE:
Taking special care for old-aged family members and make them aware about the facts of Coronavirus
SOLUTIONS:
a. It has been observed that old-age people, specially above 60 years old, are more prone to this Coronavirus disease, and hence more fatal for them due to less immunity. So, take extra care of elders, who are suffering from some other illness.
b. Ask the elderly person to stay at home, and if they are habituated to go for morning/evening walk for their health benefit, then ask them to walk in housing compound/society itself. If that too not possible then choose some less crowded area where they can just walk and come back, without socializing with other senior citizens.
c. Since old-aged people are not so active on Internet, they may not be aware of some facts about Coronavirus, so explain them and make them aware in detail, about all the safety measures and related information.
5. HURDLE:
Proper monitoring of our health, without getting panicked
SOLUTIONS:
World Health Organization (WHO) recommends us to be Informed, Prepared, Smart and Safe.So, act according to the guidelines.
a. Avoid touching your mouth, nose, eyes
b. Wash your hand with soap and water frequently
c. Check for the symptoms like fever, cough and shortness of breath
d. If you feel shortness of breath, then seek medical care immediately
e. For any minor cold or cough symptoms, drink hot/warm water, gargle and take rest
f. Eat healthy, nutritious food to boost your immunity
g. Drink lots of water and be hydrated
For more information, please refer to the guidelines given by World Health Organization (WHO) on Coronavirus disease (COVID-19).
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