Social distancing during the coronavirus pandemic: here’s what to know
Schools are closing, stadiums have shuttered and public health officials are urging the public to practice social distancing as COVID-19 cases spread across the United States.
As of Monday, more than 4,000 people in the U.S. are confirmed to have the coronavirus, according to Johns Hopkins University.
With officials reporting that limited test kits are available and a vaccine is at least a year away, social distancing is “one of the only tools we have available to us,” McClatchy News reported, citing an expert in public health law and policy. Washing your hands, of course, is another.
What is social distancing?
According to Johns Hopkins Medicine, social distancing at its most basic level is “increasing the physical space between people to avoid spreading illness.”
The World Health Organization recommends staying at least three feet away from others, but the U.S. Centers for Disease Control recommends doubling that to at least six feet.
“With COVID-19, the goal of social distancing right now is to slow down the outbreak in order to reduce the chance of infection among high-risk populations and to reduce the burden on health care systems and workers,” experts at Johns Hopkins said.
In practice, that means no hugs, handshakes or unnecessary physical contact, according to the university.
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Johns Hopkins said social distancing can include working from home, closing schools and switching to online learning, and canceling conferences and large gatherings — much of which has already been instituted.
Governors across the country have declared a state of emergency and shut down schools and are restricting large gatherings; the NBA, MLB, NHL, PGA and college basketball suspended or postponed their seasons and upcoming tournaments; President Donald Trump halted travel from Europe; Disneyland closed; and religious institutions have suspended services.
Why is it important?
Health officials coined the term “flattening the curve” in response to the coronavirus pandemic.
According to experts at Johns Hopkins, social distancing has the potential to “prevent surges in illness that could overwhelm health care systems.”
It looks like this:
“Community interventions like event closures play an important role,” said Caitlin Rivers, an epidemiologist from the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security. “But individual behavior changes are even more important. Individual actions are humble but powerful.”
The university pointed to the 1918 Spanish flue pandemic as precedence.
Citing a study by the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, experts at Johns Hopkins said cities that intervened at an early phase by closing schools and banning public gatherings “had significantly lower death rates.”
“Every single reduction in the number of contacts you have per day with relatives, with friends, co-workers, in school will have a significant impact on the ability of the virus to spread in the population,” Dr. Gerardo Chowell, chair of population health sciences at Georgia State University, told the New York Times.
How to do it effectively — even if you’re healthy
The WHO and the CDC have urged companies to let their employees work from home if they’re able. Canceled events with large crowds are also preventing people from coming in close contact with each other.
But for the young and otherwise healthy asking if they can continue to socialize — “Please don’t,” the New York Times says.
That’s especially true for Tuesday, St. Patrick’s Day, which is usually a festive occasion.
A few people have held “quarantine parties,” and someone even created a “COVID-19 Quarantine Party” playlist on Spotify.
But young people with mild symptoms can still be carriers and keep the chain of infection going, the New York Times reported.
“If you ignore the guidance on social distancing, you will essentially put yourself and everyone else at much higher risk,” according to the Times.
Public health experts interviewed by The Atlantic echoed that sentiment to some extent, saying healthy individuals with no underlying conditions should probably avoid bars, restaurants and the gym.
But that doesn’t mean they shouldn’t go outside or take a trip to the grocery store when needed.
Walking, running or biking outside in otherwise uncrowded locations isn’t a bad idea — particularly for maintaining a person’s physical and mental well-being, The Atlantic reported.
One expert recommended grocery shopping at off-peak times, such as first thing in the morning.
“There is a general consensus that while young and healthy people who are at lower risk for personally suffering severe illness from the coronavirus don’t have to be locking themselves in their homes for the next month, they do need to dramatically alter their daily lives, starting now,” according to The Atlantic.
This story was originally published March 16, 2020 at 3:00 PM with the headline "Social distancing during the coronavirus pandemic: here’s what to know."
