Chongqing- Most Chinese are celebrating the first Mid-Autumn Festival and the National Day, an eight-day “golden week” holiday after the pandemic. And, yes, indeed, the COVID-19 has mainly been brought under control in the Chinese mainland; health experts still advise the public to take necessary precautionary measures for disease control and prevention when traveling with friends and family.
Li Qin, director of the Municipal Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), attends Monday’s press conference. (Chongqing Release)
'Four musts and five shoulds' for a safe and pleasant holiday, was recommended by Li Qin, chief physician and director of the epidemic prevention office under the Chongqing Municipal Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), at a press conference just before the first long holiday.
Four Musts:
- Wash Your Hands
Constant hand-washing is probably the most comfortable and most effective measure you could take, yet people still tend to ignore this advice. Just because something is simple doesn’t necessarily mean that it’s small; in fact, washing your hands is never a “small” thing, especially under current circumstances.
So, please remember to use soaps and clean running water when washing your hands; make sure to rub your left hand against your right hand for at least 15 seconds and thoroughly cleanse such areas as your palms, fingernails, and wrists. Alcohol-based water-free hand-sanitizers are also recommendable when water is not accessible.
- Ventilate Your Room
Open your windows whenever possible. Make sure to ventilate the air in your room every 30 minutes, and for at least 2-3 times a day.
- Avoid Gathering
Keep a one-meter or more social distance when in public places, avoid touching unnecessary items when you are outside. And perhaps more importantly, avoid participating in activities of large-scale gathering.
- Wear A Mask
Fortunately, not all people are stubborn 'anti-science Americans' who deem compulsory mask-wearing a serious infringement upon their liberty and human rights. So, this shouldn’t come as a surprise. But, still, one could never stress mask-wearing too frequently. It’s for the safety of your own and those around you, after all.
Remember to wear a mask, preferably surgical or medical masks, when taking metros, buses, and long-distance coaches. You might not be able to get to a theater or shopping center without a mask. Of course, avoid any contact with any potential symptomatic or asymptomatic carriers of any flu viruses.
Five Shoulds:
- The “Right” Place
Avoid medium and high risk-level areas in terms of epidemic control and prevention. Try to determine the risk levels of the places you are heading and pay attention to the different epidemic control and prevention policies and measures. Most importantly, prepare your Health Code.
- Hand-Sanitizer and Disinfectant
Depending on the places you are going to, and the days you would spend there, different Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) might be necessary for your specific needs. Unless you are going to the front line to save people’s lives, just normal facemasks and disinfectants will suffice your daily needs.
- On-The-Road Precautions
Either you are traveling alone, or with someone, you should always remember to wear a mask and frequently wash your hands. Also, choose contactless electronic and mobile payment options (and avoid touching paper money) whenever possible.
- Food and Drinks
Choose reliable hotels and restaurants for your holiday journeys, order takeout, or prepare your own food when in a new and unknown place. Do not drink raw running water (boil for 1 minute first), and do not eat game and wildlife.
- Self-Monitoring
Keep track of your health conditions every day, take your temperature first whenever going to a public place. Self-isolate for 14 days if you just return from a high risk-level area, and notify local hospitals and clinic centers of your health conditions when necessary, that is, if you start to show symptoms of coughing, sneezing, running a fever, etc. Cooperate with medical personnel to conduct nucleic sample taking and other epidemic control and prevention measures.