As the seven-day National Day holiday ends, there is growing mobility of people, which has increased the risk of epidemic transmission, especially in public places such as expressway service areas, railway stations and bus stations. These crowded places are prone to epidemic transmission and spread. On October 9th, the Health and Education Center of the Hunan Provincial Health Commission issued tips for personal protection against epidemics in packed public places.

1. How to do personal protection when taking public transport?

　　(1) Before taking public transport, prepare items such as masks, disinfectant wipes or portable hand-free sanitizers.

　　(2) Wear a mask throughout the journey, try to keep a social distancing of more than 1 meter from others, and use a tissue or elbow arm to cover when sneezing or coughing.

　　(3) Take the initiative to cooperate in monitoring body temperature and checking health QR codes at stations, airports and terminals and to minimize detention time.

　  (4) During the ride, maintain hand hygiene, try to avoid touching objects such as handrails, and do not use your hands to touch your mouth, eyes or nose directly.

    (5) Try to use contactless payments. For example, you can scan the QR code to pay for the bus fare.

    (6) Wash your hands properly after getting off to ensure hand hygiene.

2. How to do personal protection in public places such as supermarkets and shopping malls?

　　(1) Comply with the management rules of the places, wear a mask when entering the areas as required, have body temperature measured, and show health QR codes.

　　(2) Make a shopping list and reduce the time spent in shopping venues as much as possible.

　　(3) Keep a distance of more than 1 meter from others when shopping and checking out, and give preference to using QR codes to pay bills

    (4) Give priority to escalators, and wear a mask if you must take an elevator.

    (5) Wash your hands immediately after getting home and maintain hand hygiene. 

3. How to do personal protection when shopping at farmers' markets?

    (1) Cooperate with temperature measurement.

    (2) Do personal protection: carry a mask with you in farmers' markets of low-risk areas. When shopping in crowded stalls, you should wear masks. Customers from medium- and high-risk areas should wear a mask when entering the farmers' markets, and disposable gloves or plastic gloves are recommended when selecting goods. In addition, priority should be given to using QR codes to pay bills.

    (3) Enhance personal hygiene: Avoid touching the mouth, eyes, and nose with unclean hands and covering them with dirty hands when sneezing. Instead, cover your coughs and sneeze with a tissue or use your elbow arm to cover your mouth and nose. Wash your hands promptly after leaving the markets, and carry quick-drying hand sanitizer when available.

    (4) When buying frozen foods, try to avoid touching them directly with your hands. After returning home, wash your hands with soap or hand sanitizer promptly. Wash food carefully before processing and prevent splashing. When processing, keep raw food from cooked food and cook the food thoroughly before consumption. It is better to use fresh bags to separately package the food for storage.

4. How to do personal protection when dining at restaurants?

　　(1) Choose a large spacing, well-ventilated location to sit, and minimize the number of people dining together.

　　(2) Choose staggered dining as far as possible to avoid crowding.

　　(3) Clean hands before eating.

　　(4) When dining with more than two people, use serving chopsticks and spoons or eat individual dishes.

　　(5) Try to order and pay through contact-free methods such as online payment or using QR codes to pay bills.
 
5. How to do personal protection in the workplace?

　　(1) Comply with the company's epidemic prevention and control measures and regulations.

　　(2) Cooperate with body temperature measurement.

　　(3) Do not go to work with illness. If you have a fever and other discomforts, report your company and seek immediate medical attention.

　　(4) In the workplace, you should wear a mask, wash your hands regularly, keep 1-meter social distancing, open ventilation windows, and avoid gathering.

　　(5) When riding in an elevator, pay attention to keeping a distance from others and avoid direct contact with buttons with your hands.

6. How to do personal protection when going to the hospital?

　　(1) You should know the course of treatment in advance and shorten the time you stay in the hospital.

　　(2) Wear a mask throughout the visit and take the initiative to cooperate in taking body temperature, presenting health QR code, and registering with real names, etc.

　　(3) Wash hands regularly or use hand-free disinfectant to maintain hand hygiene, and do not touch the eyes, mouth or nose.

The Health and Education Center of the Hunan Provincial Health Commission reminds us that we should always pay attention to personal protection, keep a safe social distancing, and develop good hygiene habits such as wearing a mask properly, washing hands regularly, often ventilating, not gathering, less dining together, and serving of individual dishes and keep a healthy lifestyle.

This article is from the Hunan Provincial Government www.enghunan.gov.cn.

Translator: Xiao Juan

Chinese source: Chinanews