You Can Be a Hero in the Fight Against COVID-19
With the number of COVID-19 cases rising in the St. Louis area, it’s easy to feel frightened or hopeless. After all, what can one person do in a face of such an enormous tragedy?
But the Saint Louis County Department of Public Health wants residents throughout the region to think of it another way. Each and every one of us has the power to save lives in this pandemic. It’s simple: wear a mask, wash your hands, and keep your distance. Not all heroes wear capes, but these days, every good hero needs a mask. Think of a cold day when you can see your breath in the air. When you exhale, and particularly when you talk or cough, these tiny droplets of moisture spread out around you. If you have COVID-19 – even if you don’t know it yet and haven’t started to feel sick – the droplets will carry the virus with them. A good cloth mask, made from two layers of cotton fabric and well-fitted to your face, will catch that moisture before it can spread to others.
up! And crowded indoor spaces? Those are your kryptonite. The vast majority of COVID-19 cases start with situations where people were in the same room together. If you must be indoors with people you don’t live with, wear your mask and try to spend less than 15 minutes before you leave.
Public Health can support you in this fight. You can visit stlcorona.com and click the flag in the top right corner of the screen to find more Spanish-language resources and schedule a free COVID-19 test at one of the County clinics or dozens of other locations throughout the region.
One power that you don’t have? Invincibility. Many young people think that they cannot get COVID-19, but this just isn’t true. While young people aren’t as likely to die from the disease, they can still easily catch it and spread it to others. If you live with older relatives, remember that they are exposed to everything that you are exposed to. If you go to a party or a bar, anything you breathe in there may very well end up in your grandmother’s lungs.
Clean hands are another powerful tool in the fight against disease. We all think we’re washing our hands the right way, but in reality, most of us don’t do it frequently enough or thoroughly enough. Do you wash for a full 20 seconds, using warm water and soap? Do you wash every time you eat, use the restroom, sneeze, or change your mask? This is where parents have an extra superpower. Children learn healthy habits by watching what we do. Make sure your The only way to protect the people you love is children see you washing your hands and to be strict about following health guidelines show them how to do it correctly. and limiting where you go and who you see. It can feel awkward to tell people that you Think of all the STLMade places You’ve probably heard much of this advice. can’t come over to visit or that you don’t But it’s worth repeating – particularly as the where you love to shop & eat. want to shake hands. But anyone – even your holidays approach and people start thinking Now think of them even more relatives and friends you trust – could have about gatherings with family and friends. the virus and not even know it. If you want because they need our support. Perhaps the most important step you can to be a hero for your family and friends, you #LoveLocalSTL and keep St. take to protect yourself and others is to will need to take a tough stand. Louis businesses in business. avoid gatherings and close encounters. Saint Louis is full of heroes like you, and if we Think of it as your force field. Is someone all commit to following this advice, we can coming closer than six feet? Stop and back defeat COVID-19. We at the Department of
Use #LoveLocalSTL to spread the word.
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