The "Northern Italy" govtt advice in the Uk was mixed. There was no self isolation giudance when Zara Philips came back from there ten days ago. She did not self-isolate and followed govt guideance. Each country scrambled to gather data, assess, understand and give appropriate guidance as the situation emerged. I don't know how the NZ guidance has changed over the last ten days.
It will be easy to mob the people that are picked out for their behaviour. A lot of that seems to be going on through tracking people's movements and thevirus in China and South Korea. Not sure it helps much.
But if the assumption isn't that it's everywhere - why bother washing hands? If I assume that it's not in my area, then I don't need precautions do I? And by everywhere I don't mean that it's definitely on every solitary surface - but outside of my house, I don't KNOW where it is - so I have to assume that it may be. It could be on the hanging strap, it could be on the door handle....it could be anywhere
Surely the whole point of what the govt has been saying - and getting everyone to wash their hands - is because they don't know where it is and so the assumption has to be that it is everywhere from any given individual's perspective. Erring on the side of caution. That is just sense. Not hysteria, not paranoia.
Similarly, my house is 'outside' to someone else - so I would expect someone who visits my house to wash their hands when they return to their 'safe' house - as they don't know if my house is infected or not do they?
Isn't what's been said so far akin to:
-> Your house is basically safe from your perspective - in as much as you aren't known to have the virus already.
-> Outside is unknown - so don't take chances - wash your hands after contact
IE
->Moving from inside to inside - no need to wash hands
->Moving from inside to outside - no need to wash hands
->Moving outside to ... - wash hands
So all I've been saying is that model works (although it is a defensive mechanism - ie it works on the assumption that washing hands stops the washer from receiving the virus. It does not work if the subject already has the virus and doesn't know - ie unbeknownst to me, I have the virus and it's on me and my hands and I move from my safe house to outside without washing my hands - and thereby spread the virus) - great - but it ignores 'stuff' that you take from outside into your home. So if you can (and some people won't be able to) just think about that aspect as well and take precautions.
I’m not sure if we’re progressing the debate Steve, the government is absolutely *not* telling you to assume it is everywhere.
In fact they are not asking you to assume anything; so I would encourage you not to assume it is in your supermarket, not to assume it is on your shopping, shopping bag, frozen food and fresh food, and that you need to wash you hands in between touching anything. If you insist on thinking this means you should never wash your hands again, that’s your call.
I would encourage you to listen to the Radio 4 show I linked just above for a rational, balanced point of view.
I would just like to point out that in my pharmacy we have already had people in suffering from skin problems on their hands and wrists from excessive hand washing so please be sensible.
I would just like to point out that in my pharmacy we have already had people in suffering from skin problems on their hands and wrists from excessive hand washing so please be sensible.
What was the pharmacy advice out of interest? I'm not seeing many places where advice is given to use a better soap and people seem fixated on brightly coloured and heavily perfumed liquid soaps that dry your skin out.
If you can keep your head, while those around you are losing theirs, you may not have grasped the seriousness of the situation.
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Who DO you BBC haters trust?
In fact they are not asking you to assume anything; so I would encourage you not to assume it is in your supermarket, not to assume it is on your shopping, shopping bag, frozen food and fresh food, and that you need to wash you hands in between touching anything. If you insist on thinking this means you should never wash your hands again, that’s your call.
I would encourage you to listen to the Radio 4 show I linked just above for a rational, balanced point of view.