How to Protect Yourself and others from COVID-19

March 18, 2020 | By PAHF

As the situation involving COVID-19 continues to evolve, Peace Arch Hospital Foundation will continue to prioritize the health, safety, and well-being of our people and surrounding community. We are closely monitoring the advice of our local health experts. These include Fraser Health, the BC Centre for Disease Control, the BC Government, and the Public Health Agency of Canada.

The most important thing you can do to prevent the spread of infection is to wash your hands regularly and avoid touching your face. To help reduce your risk of infection, you should also follow these important steps:

Wash your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds. Using soap and water is the single most effective way of reducing the spread of infection.
If a sink is not available, alcohol based hand rubs (ABHR) can be used to clean your hands as long as they are not visibly soiled. If they are visibly soiled, use a wipe and then ABHR to effectively clean them.
Do not touch your face, eyes, nose or mouth with unwashed hands.
Cover your mouth and nose with a disposable tissue or the crease of your elbow when you sneeze or cough.
Regularly clean and disinfect frequently touched surfaces.
Do not share food, drinks, utensils, etc.
Distance yourselves from others, limit time in public spaces unless deemed essential
Refrain from non-essential travel at this time

Will wearing a mask protect me?

Masks should be used by sick people to prevent transmission to other people. A mask will help keep a person’s droplets in.
It may be less effective to wear a mask in the community when a person is not sick themselves. Masks may give a person a false sense of security and are likely to increase the number of times a person will touch their own face (e.g., to adjust the mask).

Health-care workers will wear surgical masks, eye protection and gowns in order to protect themselves and other patients. During health-care procedures in which aerosol sprays may be generated (for example, when giving certain inhaled medications), health-care workers should wear specialized masks.

How can I protect my loved ones?

Follow the same advice that public health officials recommend for the cold and flu season: wash your hands often with soap and water, cover your mouth and nose when coughing or sneezing, avoid others who are unwell, and stay home when you are sick.

The most important thing you can do to prevent coronavirus and other illnesses is to wash your hands regularly and avoid touching your face.
Cover your mouth when you cough so you’re not exposing other people. If you are sick yourself, stay away from others. Contact your health-care provider ahead of time so you can be safely assessed.

Listen to Dr. Eleni Galanis talk about how COVID-19 is transmitted (Video).

What if I have a chronic condition?

Current information suggests that older people with chronic health conditions such as diabetes, heart disease and lung disease are at higher risk of developing more severe illness or complications from COVID-19. If you are at higher risk for COVID-19 complications, follow general preventative strategies against infection, and should you become ill, seek medical help early.

Read this patient handout for patients with chronic health conditions for more information.

Where can I get more information?

A variety of health experts are closely monitoring COVID-19, and have online resources that are being updated daily. These include Fraser Health, the BC Centre for Disease Control, the BC Government, and the Public Health Agency of Canada.

If you suspect that you have COVID-19 symptoms, please call the Public Health Link at 8-1-1.