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Covid-19 task team advises on use of gloves and masks

Remember that the glove is a haven for the virus and these must be sanitised every bit as well and as often as one's hands.

The Lower South Coast Covid-19 task team has this advice to offer on the use of personal protective equipment (PPE) to prevent infections.

The Covid-19 virus can only enter your body through your eyes, nose or mouth and only you can put it there. Do not touch your face.

ALSO READ: Covid-19: To mask, or not to mask…that is the question

In the last two weeks, the team has noticed members of the public using an array of PPEs from gloves to masks to hand sanitisers.

Good hand sanitising is the most effective method of combating Covid-19. Hand sanitising includes handwashing with soap and water for 20 seconds.

The reason it works is simple.

The virus has a protective fat layer which is broken down by soap and water.

Without this protective fat layer, the virus is deemed ineffective. A 60 percent alcohol-based hand sanitiser is equally effective.

Pour 2ml to 3ml of hand sanitiser into the palm of your hand. Rub it between your palms, on the back of your hands, around the wrists and on the fingertips.

Many people are wearing gloves while driving and going about their business. Remember that the glove is a haven for the virus and these must be sanitised every bit as well and as often as one’s hands.

If not sanitised, the gloves carry the bugs from the time you put them on to the time you take them off.

Masks come in different forms from surgical and N95 masks to a simple cloth mask.

N95 masks are for healthcare workers. Do not waste this resource as healthcare workers are exposed to sick people and need these masks more than you do.

If you are coughing or sneezing, wear a mask.

A surgical or cloth mask will suffice. It would trap any droplets that you may expel through your mouth and nose preventing the infection of people and contamination of surfaces around you.

Cloth masks can be washed daily and dried in the sun. Have a supply of four to five masks to rotate through the days of the week.

Masks are an unnatural facial garment, so one constantly has the urge to touch the mask or adjust it.

In doing so, one may inadvertently touch one’s face. This is a direct route for the virus to enter your body.

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* Notice: Coronavirus reporting at Caxton Local Media aims to combat fake news

Dear reader,

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