Preparing for COVID19 at home/ Isolation room

We hope everyone is doing well and staying safe! First of all, we wanted to commend you for your efforts to stay at home — from our talks with patients; it seems like everyone is prioritizing social distancing, which is excellent. We also wanted to share some advice on how to prepare for the improbable event that a family member develops symptoms — fever, cough, and /or shortness of breath — or tests positive for COVID19.

If a family member or household member contracts the novel coronavirus, that person must practice self-isolation. We recommend setting up an ‘isolation room’ in your home to avoid spreading the virus to family members. If possible, this can be a guest room, den, library, etc. — any room or space where the patient can quarantine separately from the rest of the household. If you have the time, please try and set up this room in advance, as a precaution.

Make sure your ‘isolation room’ is fully prepared ahead of time. In essence, you’ll want to make sure you fill the room with medical supplies such as a thermometer, masks, cough drops, nasal saline spray, Tylenol, and cleaning solution (see here the CDC’s guide to making cleaning solution at home: https://www.cdc.gov/disasters/bleach.html). It will also help to have trash bags and disposable plates/flatware for the infected family member to use. In terms of food and drink, try to stock up on water, Gatorade (or other electrolyte-heavy drinks), crackers, and non-perishable food items. Finally, it’s a good idea to have daily multivitamins and vitamin c, bananas, apples, honey (for sore throat), and chicken soup.

By stocking your isolation room with these items, you will make it easier for your family member to self-quarantine, and also help make the entire two weeks of illness and separation a bit more comfortable for him/her. 

If your home has multiple bathrooms, be sure to designate one specifically for the sick family member’s exclusive use. If there is only one bathroom, the infected person should make sure to wear a mask to the bathroom, use disposable hand towels, and keep a towel in their room/area. Healthy family members should remove all toiletries and care for them in their respective bedrooms or a distinct part of the home.

Although we are all doing the best we can to socially distance, we do hope this quick guide will help you prepare for a scenario in which a family member does contract the virus. Wishing everyone the best and looking forward to getting back to our regular programming in the hopefully-not-too-distant future.

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