Category: Lifestyle

July 21, 2020

8 Tips To Help Prevent Coronavirus Infection and Illness

Health, Lifestyle

The human coronavirus is commonly spread through respiratory droplets in the air from a sick person, close personal contact, or by touching a surface with the virus on it. You can take steps to protect yourself and prevent the spread of the virus by washing your hands often, not touching your face, cleaning frequently touched surfaces, avoiding close contact with sick people, and practicing good respiratory hygiene.

Here are steps you can take to protect yourself and your loved ones and prevent the spread of coronavirus:

  1. Clean your hands often. Wash your hands regularly with soap and water for at least 20 seconds,* says HealthLink BC. If soap and water aren’t readily available, use a hand sanitizer that contains at least 60% alcohol. Cleaning your hands often helps to lower your risk of infection and reduce the spread of infection to others.
  2. Avoid touching your face. Take special care not to touch your eyes, nose, and mouth with unwashed hands, since these are the most likely ways for the virus to enter your body,* advises the World Health Organization.
  3. Clean and disinfect frequently touched surfaces. Potentially contaminated surfaces may include tables, doorknobs, light switches, countertops, handles, desks, phones, keyboards, toilets, faucets and sinks,* says the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
  4. Keep a safe distance from sick people. Maintain a safe distance of at least two metres between yourself and anyone who is coughing or sneezing since the virus is thought to spread between people who are within that distance.*
  5. Avoid sharing personal items with others. Don’t share food, drinks, glasses, utensils

    , towels and other household items with others.*

  6. Practice good respiratory hygiene. Cover your mouth and nose with your elbow or tissue when you cough or sneeze. Dispose of the used tissue and immediately wash your hands for at least 20 seconds,* advises Mayo Clinic.
  7. Greet without physical contact. Greet people with a friendly wave, smile, nod, or bow.
  8. Stay in, if you feel sick. Avoid close contact with others if you feel unwell. If you have a cough or fever, seek medical attention.*
February 18, 2020

School Risk Management: 9 Classroom Safety Tips

Everyday Tips, Health, Lifestyle

School Risk Management: 9 Classroom Safety Tips

By Gibson

Classroom_Safety.jpgStudents and teachers spend most of their school day in classrooms. And thanks to hardworking and creative teachers, these rooms are transformed into welcoming educational environments. They can bring life to an otherwise bland space with decorations and inspire students with innovative lesson plans.

But with such high use and so much going on, classrooms also need to be safe environments. Places where students can learn and teachers can teach without worrying about getting hurt in an accident.

So as teachers prepare their rooms for the start of school—and maintain them throughout the year—they should be aware of dangers lurking in the classroom. And they should be equipped with simple safety precautions that can prevent injuries to themselves and their students. Consider sharing these 9 classroom safety tips with your teachers to help build a safe and secure environment:

  1. Keep Exits Clear. Make sure all classroom exits—both doors and windows—remain clear from obstructions and clutter.
  1. Safe Ladder Use. When putting up decorations or accessing materials on high shelves, always use a ladder. Do NOT stand on chairs, stools, or desks. Choose the appropriate ladder and follow ladder safety guidelines.
  1. Hang Decorations Properly. Avoid hanging things from light fixtures and sprinkler heads. Do not block exit signs or obstruct any exits with your decorations.
  1. Keep Hazardous Materials Out Of Reach. Hazardous materials, such as cleaning supplies and chemicals used for instruction, should be properly labeled and securely stored. You should also know where to find safety data sheets addressing how to properly treat exposure to hazardous materials you might have in your classroom.
  1. Eliminate Tripping Hazards. Do not leave unattended drawers or cabinet doors open. Make sure chairs are pushed in when students are moving around. Keep items put away when not in use to prevent tripping.
  1. Be Aware Of Electrical Cords. Make sure electrical cords are not running through high-traffic areas, walkways, and doorways. Do not fasten cords with staples, hang from nails, or suspend them with a wire. Don’t cover them with rugs or mats.
  1. Do Not Overload Electrical Circuits. Do not plug two extension cords or two surge protectors together. If your surge protector keeps resetting, you are overloading it! Be careful how many devices you are plugging into one outlet.
  1. Use Care When Lifting Heavy Objects. When setting up a classroom, rearranging things, or moving heavy items like textbooks, use safe lifting techniques to avoid injury.
  1. Post An Evacuation Plan Near The Door. Ensure all students are familiar with the exit routes in case of emergency. Post a resource for evacuations in the room, such as a map detailing the specific classroom location and highlighting the various exit routes available. After all, the closest exit may be behind you!

Classroom safety is an essential part of school risk management. It’s where students and teachers spend most of their time. So ensure your teachers are aware of classroom safety hazards and you’re equipping them with resources to create a safe learning environment for students and staff.

February 18, 2020

Coronavirus: A Cameroon student on how he recovered

Lifestyle

By Danny Vincent

BBC News, Hong Kong

When Kem Senou Pavel Daryl, a 21-year-old Cameroonian student living in the Chinese city of Jingzhou, contracted the coronavirus he had no intention of leaving China, even if that were possible.

“No matter what happens I don’t want to take the sickness back to Africa,” he said from his university dormitory, where he is now under a 14-day quarantine.

He was suffering from a fever, a dry cough, and flu-like symptoms.

When he became ill he thought of his time as a child in Cameroon when he contracted malaria. He feared the worse.

“When I was going to the hospital for the first time I was thinking about my death and how I thought it was going to happen,” he said.

For 13 days he remained in isolation in a local Chinese hospital. He was treated with antibiotics and drugs typically used to treat HIV patients. After two weeks of care he began to show signs of recovery.

The CT scan showed no trace of the illness. He became the first African person known to be infected with the deadly coronavirus and the first to recover. His medical care was covered by the Chinese state.

Egypt has become the first country in Africa to confirm a case of the coronavirus. Health professionals warn that countries with weaker health systems may struggle to cope with a potential outbreak of the illness, which has led to more than 1,770 deaths and infected more than 72,000 people, mostly in China.

“I don’t want to go home before finishing studying. I think there is no need to return home because all hospital fees were taken care of by the Chinese government,” says Mr Senou.

To evacuate or not?

Since late January governments around the world, led by the US, began evacuating their citizens out of Wuhan and neighbouring cities.

But thousands of African students, workers and families, remain in lockdown across the central Hubei province – the outbreak began in the provincial capital Wuhan – and some think their governments should do more to help them.

“We are sons and daughters of Africa but Africa is not willing to come to our rescue when we need it the most,” says Tisiliyani Salima, a medical student at Tongji Medical University and president of the Zambian Wuhan student association.