With a 7-day average of over 1,400 cases towards the end of September, the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak reared its head in Canada again. To put this in perspective, the figures paint a stark contrast from the 7-day average of 435 cases recorded exactly a month before in August.
The 2,176 cases recorded on September 29 also refer to the second-highest daily count since the pandemic hit the country. The last time Canada got this close to such a figure was on May 3, when it recorded 2,760 cases in a day.
This calls for the utmost attention towards established safety measures against COVID-19. This especially holds true for Canadian travelers, who are moving between cities, provinces, or countries for essential trips in the face of high risk. If you fall under this category, it’s critical that you follow advisories such as using a hand sanitizer, wearing a face mask, and practicing social distancing.
To help you with your trips during this worrisome time, here’s how you can protect yourself from COVID-19 during your travels.
Keep Washing Your Hands Frequently
According to Health Canada, it’s essential to practice effective hand hygiene to keep yourself safe from the novel coronavirus.
Even as the surface transmission of COVID-19 remains under study, it’s established that the virus can enter our system through our eyes, nose, and mouth. If anyone who has the virus particles on their fingers or hands touches their face, they can run the risk of contracting the novel coronavirus.
Since it’s better to be safe than sorry, it’s critical that you take this aspect seriously. It is quite a simple thing to follow: You just need to frequently wash your hands for at least 20 seconds with soap and water.
As you wash your hands for this time, make sure to scrub against your fingertips, the length of your fingers, the back of your hand, and the center of your palm. You can use any soap as long as you scrub your hands properly and rinse out problem areas such as space under your nails. This makes sure that your hands can be free of harmful particles that can transmit COVID-19.
Use a Hand Sanitizer During Your Travels
When you are traveling, there might be times where you are not able to access soap and water readily. This especially holds for situations where you are reaching your destination by road. In such instances, you can turn to hand sanitizers to keep yourself safe from COVID-19.
When you put an effective sanitizer on your hands, it kills any microorganisms that can spread diseases like novel coronavirus. This method is different from hand washing, where you are running your hands under water to scrub the germs away. But it is just as effective in keeping you safe from harmful contaminants by deactivating them.
To use your sanitizer effectively, you need to use an alcohol-based sanitizer with at least 60 percent of alcohol content in it. This makes sure that you can deactivate harmful agents on a single application. You also need to make sure that your hands are not greasy or coated with visible contaminants such as dirt or oil.
To utilize a sanitizer properly, you need to pour a substantial amount of the product on your palm and rub it across your hands, fingers, the space between your fingers, and the center of your palms. You can continue massaging the sanitizer into your skin until it runs dry.
Keeping a sanitizer with you during your travels and repeating this process can help you protect yourself against COVID-19.
Practice Social Distancing Wherever You Go
In addition, to hand washing and using a hand sanitizer, you also need to make sure that you are facing other guidelines just as effectively. This most importantly includes the practice of social distancing.
According to top health experts from Canada and worldwide, maintaining a distance of at least 2 meters from others can help you stay safe from COVID-19.
It’s because the respiratory droplets that are discharged by an infected person can travel under that distance. When you stay away from that range, it can help reduce the chances of coming in contact with them and catching the virus.
To maintain this much distance from other people at all times, you need to make sure to avoid crowded areas, steer clear of nonessential gatherings, and stay away from unnecessary outings.
When you are traveling, this calls for caution while attending work-related arrangements, buying food, or walking through public transportation. For instance, if you are on a bus, you can ensure to leave some space between yourself and another passenger to maintain this distance. Following this physical distancing can seem complicated, but it’s highly critical to protect yourself and your family.
Wear a Face Mask Throughout Your Travel
Even when you are following essential practices such as using a hand sanitizer and social distancing, you need to make sure that you are wearing a face mask at all times.
It’s because many COVID-19 cases can have the virus but do not show any symptoms. When a seemingly healthy person with a novel coronavirus infection talks, sneezes, coughs or breathes, they can spread their respiratory droplets to others and inadvertently infect them with the disease.
Even though these asymptomatic cases are being studied, it’s suspected that they run in large numbers. This is why health experts in Canada and other countries advise that everyone wear a face mask where social distancing is not possible. This absorbs their respiratory droplets and reduces the chances of spreading the virus to others.
Keeping this in mind, you must follow this practice to keep others safe. This helps you play your part in reducing the community spread of COVID-19, which allows you to protect yourself and your family in the long run. In addition to following other essential tips such as using a hand sanitizer, this particular approach can help curb the spread of the novel coronavirus by a significant margin.
By following these tips, you can ensure to keep yourself, your family, and your community safe from this existential threat during your travels. When you adhere to all of these guidelines, it creates a holistic strategy for you to keep out of harm’s way while fulfilling your responsibilities.