By Hina Kiyani
ISLAMABAD: Coronavirus has struck Pakistan with more than 400 confirmed cases across the nation today. With awareness and fear growing, hand sanitizers have been bought in bulk and with such frequency that many Pakistanis are facing trouble in procuring some. But if hand sanitizer is out of your grasp, there are plenty and, in some cases, more effective precautions one can take to keep healthy and safe.
‘Wash your hands,’ said Dr. Shahab Zahid, an Intensive Care Specialist at Islamabad’s PIMS hospital. ‘It cannot be stressed enough that handwashing can keep an entire home safe.’
Handwashing has been stressed by governments, health experts and the World Health Organization. They recommend at least 20 seconds of scrubbing with soap and water, soap’s chemical makeup being effective in breaking down the virus’ barrier and killing it before it spreads from one’s touch.
Although there is much that still remains unknown about the coronavirus and is still being studied by experts around the world, it is clear that the infection mostly spreads by touching things, such as money or a railing at a public staircase like those in office or Metro bus stations.
In addition to handwashing, there is the use of sanitizer, which is harder and harder to come by. Arab News spoke to infectious disease specialist, Dr. Saquib Malik, who is currently in New York where the pandemic has taken an alarming hold of the city.
‘Number one, do not, I repeat do not, go out if you are sick,’ he said to Arab News. If people are exhibiting any symptoms at all, Malik recommends to monitor the situation, alert one’s doctors and check the protocol of the city or province for reporting and getting tested. ‘Keeping your illness contained to the space you are occupying is going to matter in halting the spread,’ he continued.
Social distancing, the act of avoiding unnecessary interaction with people, is also strongly encouraged. ‘Avoiding physical contact and proximity is a big precautionary measure,’ Malik told Arab News over the phone. When it comes to inevitable reasons of leaving home, such as doing groceries, picking up medication or handling other major errands, Malik recommends timing oneself to avoid big crowds.
‘Go in the morning or the late evening to do whatever you can,’ said Malik. ‘Try to avoid rush hours if you have the ability to do so.’ He also recommends being conscious of shared surfaces at home. ‘It is a pain but that added wipe of disinfectant can do wonders for keeping your home and its residents safe,’ he noted.
Communal spaces at one’s residence must be kept free of outside contaminants. When one gets home they should change their clothes, remove their shoes and maintain a disinfected space. ‘A bit of vigilance now will hopefully pay off in the long run,’ he said.
