Social distancing and self-isolation are another 2 terms to add to our growing list of words that have come into our daily language since COVID19 that we may not have uttered much before (like unprecedented, coronavirus, COVID19, school closures).

So what does Social Distancing and Self-Isolation actually mean and what is the difference between them?

Social distancing is where we are responsible for limiting our contact with other people in order to avoid the passing on of COVID19.

We will not always know if someone has COVID19 so Social Distancing measures will help us reduce the chance of the virus spreading.

The measures we are to follow are:

• Avoid contact with someone who is displaying symptoms such as a high temperature and/or a new and continuous cough.
• Avoid using public transport unless absolutely necessary.
• Stay at home as much as possible.
• Avoid small and large gatherings ie not more than 2 people at a time unless they are your close family (by that I mean they live in your house with you) and if they are not close family, then we should stay 2 metres away from that person at all times.
• Keep in touch with friends and family using phone, internet and social media.
• Try and use the telephone or online services as much as we can if we need to contact our doctors or contact any other essential service.

Self-Isolation occurs when you or someone in your household develops symptoms that might indicate COVID19 such as a high temperature, a new continuous cough. If this occurs, you and your family must not leave your home for any reason. Any exercise should be taken at home but you can go into your garden if you have one. If you show the symptoms described above, you need to self-isolate for 7 days. If after 7 days you still have a high temperature, you must keep self-isolating until your temperature returns to normal. A cough can last for several weeks but you need not self-isolate after 7 days if you just have a cough remaining but social distancing will still remain in place. This is the official advice as per www.nhs.uk.

If someone you live with has symptoms but you do not, you still need to self-isolate for 14 days from the day their symptoms started. This is because it can take 14 days for symptoms to appear. If you then go on to develop symptoms as well, you need to self-isolate for 7 days from the day when your symptoms started. It’s a bit complicated but if you have any questions, just ask.

The best advice to avoid getting COVID19 is still:

• Wash your hands with soap and water
• Use hand sanitiser if soap and water are not available
• Cover your mouth and nose with a tissue or your sleeve if you cough or sneeze
• Put used tissues in the bin straight away and wash your hands
• Clean your phone regularly
• Don’t share towels such as hand towels or tea towels.