How to Quarantine When You Don’t Live Alone

FAYETTEVILLE – April 01, 2020 - How to Quarantine When You Don’t Live Alone

How to Quarantine When You Don’t Live Alone

As the nation deals with the COVID-19 pandemic, colleges and universities are closed. Workers are staying home. Many are fleeing COVID hotspots such as New York, California and Washington state to hunker down with family in other parts of the country.

If you have a loved one show up at your door healthy and well, they could still have been exposed. Though not every exposed person will get sick, the virus does have a 14-day incubation period. It is wise, therefore, to have these family members practice a 14-day self-quarantine.

Living with Someone Under Self-Quarantine:

1. Limit the possibly exposed person’s contact with the rest of the household.
2. Clean frequently touched surfaces and objects often. These include tables, countertops, light switches, doorknobs and cabinet handles.
3. Maintain social distancing even at home. We all love a family movie night, but maybe not on the same sofa. Spread out at the dinner table. Avoid spending prolonged time in close proximity with your loved one.
4. Make sure all household members are practicing good hand hygiene and covering their coughs and sneezes with a tissue.
5. Avoid sharing items such as, dishes, drinking glasses, cups, eating utensils, towels, or bedding.
6. Make sure that shared spaces in the home have good air flow, such as by an air conditioner or an opened window.
7. Have the returned loved one stay home and have someone else in the family run errands for this person.
8. Remind everyone in your household of the importance of practicing these everyday preventive actions to help prevent the spread of COVID-19.

If the person does not develop the disease within 14 days, the person no longer needs to self-quarantine. However, if they begin to show symptoms of the virus, follow these tips:

Caring for Someone with COVID-19:

1. Avoid close contact.
2. Follow the cleaning tips above.
3. Choose a bedroom and (if possible) a bathroom in your home that can be used to separate sick household members from those who are healthy. Plan to clean these rooms, as needed, when someone is sick.
4. Have only a single family member care for that person, minimizing the risk to other family members.
5. Wear a disposable facemask and gloves when you touch or have contact with the patient’s blood, stool, or body fluids, such as saliva, sputum, nasal mucus, vomit, urine. Throw these items away after using them. Do not reuse.
6. Monitor their symptoms. If the patient is getting sicker, call their healthcare provider. If the patient has a medical emergency and you need to call 911, notify the dispatch personnel that person may have COVID-19.