Let’s begin by making sure we understand a number of terms which will go a long way to enabling us to understand the most efficient manner to limit the spread of diseases.

Endemic, Epidemic & Pandemic Outbreaks

Diseases that result as a result of microorganisms and are transmitted through populations are classified as to the extent to which they are transmitted through these populations.

Before continuing on this theme, on this part of the website, we will consider ‘the basics’ of limiting spread of disease and cross infection. This will naturally take into consideration of behavioral changes, adopting recommended practices and teaching others to do the same.

[ Our future 60-Day course includes a module – ” The Quarantine Survival Guide ” – contains additional material and information with respect to :

• Homemade Cleaning and Hygiene Replacements ; Handmade (and safe) Face masks
• How To Maintain Friendships, Make Friends And Socialize During A Lockdown
• Essential Purchases & Storage of Household Supplies & Food ].

Now that we have understood the differences between endemic, epidemic and pandemic, it will now be easier for us to understand AND appreciate the differences between Quarantine, Isolation and Physical / Social Distancing :

Another way to understand (and remember) this :

Isolation separates sick people with a contagious disease from people who are not sick.

Quarantine separates and restricts the movement of people who were exposed to a contagious disease to see if they become sick.

These people may have been exposed to a disease without knowing OR they may have the disease BUT do not show symptoms.

5 Ways To Stay Healthy & Comfortable During a Quarantine

Is Your Home Safe ?

We all know that germs can make us sick — from the cold virus that zaps our energy to bacteria like E. coli or salmonella that throw our stomachs for a loop.

Germs, or microbes, are tiny organisms that live all around us, in the air; in the soil and water; and on food, plants, and animals (including on and in our bodies). Most germs are not harmful, but rather help us when it comes to synthesizing vitamins, maintaining digestive and immune system health, and breaking down food into nutrients.

Unfortunately, our homes are covered with germs and bacteria that can make us sick. In 2011, National Sanitation Foundation International conducted a study to identify germ hot spots in the home :

Here’s where they found contamination:

• More than 75% of dish sponges/rags
• 45% of kitchen sinks
• 32% of counter-tops
• 18% of cutting boards
• 27% of toothbrush holders
• 9% of bathroom faucet handles

According to the study’s findings, the areas where food is prepared actually contained more bacteria and faecal contamination than many other places in the home.

1. Store Enough Food & Water On Hand + General Household Supplies

Food and water can be scarce during a crisis. Grocery stores may be empty for days, weeks, or even months. One of the most important things you’ll need during a quarantine or lockdown is plenty of food and water You also must know the right kinds of food to stock up on, and how to store food so it doesn’t spoil.

You may be stuck inside for a long time. You have to plan for the worst. Stocking up on larger amounts of food you typically purchase is not the best approach.

2. Know How To Make Your Own Mask

Covering your face with a mask during a virus outbreak could save your life. It’s also courteous.

You see, masks not only help prevent you from catching a virus, but they also keep you from spreading a virus to other people in your household.

Unfortunately, medical-grade masks are almost impossible to get your hands on during a virus outbreak. That’s why it’s important you know how to make a homemade mask.

You might be concerned that a homemade mask won’t protect you but experts tell us these masks can help :

“Cover your face with cloth – however you want to do that” 

That’s the advice from Shan Soe-Lin, a lecturer at the Yale Jackson Institute for Global Affairs who was a co-author of a widely shared article about the need to cover your face.

3. Sanitize Your Home & Car

During a public health emergency or virus outbreak, you have to regularly disinfect your home and car. It’s not an option.

Every time you leave your home you risk bringing contamination back with you.Your clothes, keys, shoes, cell phone, and even your debit card can carry a virus. So what can you do? There are specific cleaners you can use to sanitize different surfaces and materials :

ALSO BEAR IN MIND –

You should not use the same cleaner you use on your floor to disinfect your car seats.

4. Know How To Make Cleaning & Hygiene Supplies

Cleaning and hygiene products can save you and / or family members’ lives during a virus outbreak.

Also, it is these products that are the first items the public hordes when they start to panic buy ! That’s why it’s good to know how to make your own.

If the cleaning supply shelves in your local grocery store are empty you can learn how to make these essential products at home :

• Hand sanitizer
• Laundry soap
• Dish soap
• Deodorant
• Bath soap and …
• Toothpaste

Not only is this a good skill to have but it can save you a lot of money because making your own cleaning supplies is much cheaper than buying brand name products.

5. Make Friends And Socialize During A Lockdown

When work and public meeting places are shut down due to protective lockdowns, finding other ways to socialize becomes vital especially to relieve boredom. Furthermore, most of us need human interaction to keep us from slipping into depression.

Here are some useful suggestions :

” Being aware of, cleaning regularly, and avoiding germ hot spots is one strategy to avoid infections that can lead to colds, the flu, or other problems. The other important part is not letting the germs you are exposed enter your body. Wash frequently and try not to touch your nose, mouth, and eyes.”

Kelly Reynolds, PhD, Professor of microbiology and the Director of the Environment, Exposure Science and Risk Assessment Center at the University of Arizona’s Mel and Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health in Tucson.

Covering Your Family’s Hygiene Necessities for a Pandemic Lockdown / Quarantine / Isolation Period.

Introduction

After food and water, hygiene products are the next items that disappear from shelves when a pandemic strikes. So your odds of getting what you have to have during a time when needs are elevated is slim.

You want to prepare now so that you don’t have to fight crowds. Plus, you want to make sure you can stay isolated from them so that you won’t bring any illness back to your own home.

You’ll want to figure out how much of each hygiene product your family goes through by adding up what you normally go through in a year’s time. Then multiply that by at least a two year period.

Hygiene items can store that long, so even if the pandemic doesn’t last that long, you won’t have wasted the expense of buying the items. You’ll need to stock up on toilet paper.

The best rule of thumb is to figure two rolls per family member per week with extra rolls figured in for the event of illness that could require more usage. For toothpaste, figure that a family of four would need two tubes of toothpaste per month.

Dental floss should be figured at one container per month per person. Toothbrushes should be replaced more often during a pandemic because of the higher chance of you having to deal with germs. A good rule of thumb is to change toothbrushes every four weeks – sooner if anyone in the family has an illness.

You’ll need bar soap. If you currently use liquid hand soap, it’s more cost effective to plan to use bar soap during a pandemic. However, since pandemics are spread through viruses and germs, you’ll want to make sure that you have a hearty supply of hand sanitizer to use during the length of the isolation period.

Everyone in the family – except for infants and small children – will need deodorant. Using the solids is more cost effective than the spray on kind. Figure a container per person that uses it per month.

Feminine products should be figured at the current use, but always store extras in case of extra needs. If you use condoms for intimacy, you’ll want to pack a supply of those as well.

You’ll need to pack in storage a supply of razors for both men and women as well as a supply of shaving cream. Shampoo is something you can also store up, but in a pinch, hand soap can be used to wash hair if you don’t have enough shampoo.

Lotions for dry skin should also be on your store list. Also add Chapstick to prevent cracked lips from occurring. Q-tips and nail clippers for each person should also be stored for use. You’ll want separate nail clippers to help keep nail fungus and other bacteria or viruses at bay.

If you have infants, you’ll want to store up diapers and baby wipes. Now you’ll want to be careful on the diaper sizing since babies can outgrow diapers. So buy these in size increments to allow for that.

1 – How to Quarantine Your Family During an Outbreak

During a disease outbreak, you may need to quarantine your family to keep disease from entering into your home.  But it’s difficult to quarantine your family if you don’t have supplies onhand to survive during a long period of time. 

You may also encounter a situation where you have a sick family member that needs to be quarantined from the rest of the household. If you don’t come in close contact with a virus, you can’t get sick from it. 

The purpose of quarantine, then, is to prevent the possibility of coming into contact with a virus that can be deadly and spread quickly – just as the common cold is easily spread.

Keep Disease Out of Your Home

If the purpose of quarantine is to keep healthy family member well, you’ll need to be prepared ahead of time with all of the supplies you need for food, sanitation, and hygiene. 

You’ll want to seal off the outside entrances of your home using duct tape and plastic sheeting to cover doors and windows.  Most people find it helpful to cut out plastic sheeting ahead of time that will fit these entrances so that in times of stress, all you have to do is tape them up.

It’s important to have a designated area outdoors where you’ll place items such as used bags for personal waste.  It’s not a good idea to store these in your home because they increase the risk of developing a host of diseases.

Once you’re sheltered in place, you’ll want to keep communication lines open with radio communication so that you’ll know when it’s safe to leave your home.

What to Do When a Family Member Is ill

A more likely scenario when it comes to illness is that you’ll have one or more members of your family who has become ill.  Those people will need to be quarantined in a room of your home or in another nearby place. 

For example, if you have a motor home, cabin, or detached garage you can use these as quarantine areas. These rooms need to be sealed off with duct tape and plastic sheeting. 

You’ll also need to place a sign on the entrance stating that it is a quarantined area.  This warns people to stay out unless they’re wearing protective clothing. Right outside the entrance you’ll need to set up a sanitation area that contains soap, water, latex gloves, masks, and other protective equipment as needed. 

Before people enter the room, they need to put on the proper protective gear.  Before returning to the rest of the household, they need to properly dispose of gloves, masks, and other disposable items and make sure they wash their hands thoroughly.

2 – Setting Up / Building a Separate Attachment for Quarantine Purposes

If someone in your family becomes ill, it may be necessary to put them into quarantine.  Of course, you want to take care of your loved ones, but you also want to minimize infecting people who are not ill.

If you have a recreational vehicle, a pool house, garage apartment, detached garage, or guest cottage, you’ll have an easy time converting it into a quarantine area.  You’ll start by cleaning out the area to make room for people who are ill and sealing off any exits and windows with plastic sheeting and duct tape.

You’ll also want to create a sign for the outside of the door that lets everyone know this area is for quarantine.  This will keep unsuspecting people from becoming accidentally exposed to the illness you’re trying to contain.

Next, you need to create a sanitation station just outside the quarantine room so that you can put on protective supplies, dispose of used supplies, and wash your hands.  This will help minimize exposure for people who are coming in and out to help those who are ill.

If you don’t have a shelter already in place, you do have other options.  One thing you can do is set up a tent outside of your home.  This should be near enough that you can get to it easily, but not directly attached to the house.  For example, ten feet away in the backyard is a perfect spot.

For a tent, you’ll need to do your best to seal off areas, but know that you won’t be able to completely seal it effectively.  The idea, though, is that you have created a separate area.  In the case of most illnesses, very close contact is needed to transmit disease.

https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/health/coronavirus/120464443/taranaki-man-selfisolating-in-a-tent-in-parents-backyard

Regardless of the structure that you use, you need to make sure that you have equipment available for communication.  The simplest system is a set of walkie talkies that allow you to communicate without being in the same room. 

If those in quarantine are well enough to take care of their needs for food and sanitation, you’ll want to provide plenty of supplies in the quarantine area for them.  If not, you’ll need to create a system to deliver what’s needed while wearing protective clothing and avoiding exposure.

Once you know that a pandemic is possible, begin to prepare these areas.  Once someone is already sick, it might be too late to get everything set up.  If you’re already prepared, you can take care of anyone who is infected immediately and minimize exposure to others.

3 – Buying Your Own Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) for Pandemics

When a pandemic breaks out, it’s important that you have protective gear on hand.  Once the emergency happens, it will be very difficult to get what you actually need – so it’s crucial that you’re prepared ahead of time.

There are many different items that can help protect you, depending on the type of illness that’s spreading.  In the case of a pandemic that would require this type of equipment, you’ll most likely be looking at a virus that has become airborne – but something like Ebola can be highly infectious in close quarters, and even sweat left on a doorknob can infect you! 

Eye Protection 

One way that disease is spread is through contact with the eyes.  The eyes don’t offer the same protection that the rest of your skin does.  If you come in contact with a virus and then touch your eyes, the virus can be delivered directly to your bloodstream.

Some masks also offer eye protection, but if you don’t have that type of mask, you at least want to have goggles.  It’s also important to develop the habit of washing your hands before touching your eyes at any time.

Gloves

Gloves are essential for allowing you to touch people and surfaces that might be covered in virus.  You’ll want to purchase multiple sizes of non-latex gloves because latex is a common skin allergy.  Even if you’re not currently allergic to latex, it’s important to note that a latex allergy can develop at any time.

N95 Masks 

Masks can help cover your mouth and nose to avoid infection.  But it’s important that you get a mask that’s actually rated to prevent viruses from passing.  Viruses are very small and a simple surgical mask isn’t enough for protection.

You’ll want to purchase N95 masks that are rated to keep viruses out.  Most of these masks are not reusable, so you’ll need to have a large supply on hand in various sizes for the members of your family.

Bio-hazard Suits 

The most expensive (but important) thing you can purchase is a biohazard suit.  This is a suit that protects you from head to toe when you’re going into an area that’s heavily affected by a pandemic.  These suits are reusable, but must be sanitized properly before taking them off.

You’ll only need one suit per member of your family, but you need to make sure it fits properly.  It’s a good idea to go through your supply every year and evaluate to see if you need to purchase additional sizes.

Shoe Covers (“Booties”) 

Booties are disposable covers for your shoes that help you to prevent tracking in disease on your feet.  They’re usually one size fits all, so you can purchase several boxes of one size for your home.

A complete range of PPE equipment & supplies can be read from the Amazon.com site by clicking the link HERE.

Alternatively, you can visit your amazon country website by clicking on the relevant “Click Here” link from the table below.

YOUR COUNTRY	Amazon website link
Canada	Click Here
UK	Click Here
Italy	Click Here
Germany	Click Here

An important module of our online course is devoted to Quarantine Survival. In this module we devote a significant period of time to :

• Help & Support when self-quarantining at home
• Family quarantine i.e. quarantine & families with children
• Recommended rules for children under and over 4 years of age who have COVID-19
• Impact on family members if a child has corona virus symptoms
• Another member of the household has corona virus symptoms
• Someone in the household has Covid-19
• Someone at school or day care has Covid-19

Let’s now discuss with the aid of a specially prepared PowerPoint slide series the Signs & Symptoms of COVID-19. Afterwards, we’ll consider Anti-COVID19 measures to minimize the risk of infection using a recent article from the BBC website as reference.

Before discussing vaccines and the COVID-19 Vaccines, we will discuss the differences between allergies, colds, ‘flu and Covid-19 again utilizing a reputable article/document plus checklist from Emerson Hospital.

The final part of this Prep & Survival section is devoted to the COVID-19 pandemic plus (i) Vaccines ; (ii) Our own set of original, concisely-written articles related to the Covid-19 vaccine options which are now in use all over the world.

SELF-MEDICATION DURING LOCKDOWNS

Self-medication is a human behaviour in which an individual uses a substance or any exogenous influence to self-administer treatment for physical and/or psychological ailments.

The most widely self-medicated substances are Over-The-Counter (OTC) drugs and dietary supplements, which are used to treat common, everyday household illnesses & injuries which still occur, even during lockdowns / pandemics.

For example :

Allergies.
Colds and 'Flu
Conjunctivitis ("pink eye“)
Diarrhoea.
Headaches.
burns
Stomach Aches.
Limb injuries(sprains, dislocations, minor fractures)

Characteristically, these medical products do not require a doctor’s prescription to obtain and are available in supermarkets and convenience stores in addition to pharmacies.

Self-medication is often seen as gaining personal independence from established medicine but it is best utilized for non-emergency situations.

Non-emergency medical situations are no less common during pandemics and / or lock downs and any individual or family can be affected by a common ailment such as headaches, migraines, colds, influenza, throat infections, tummy /GI problems. In addition, there are always cases of minor injuries – sprains, minor wounds, cuts and bruises, burns, bites and stings.

We should also bear in mind minor ailments related specifically to women and children.

You have to take into consideration that all of these common ailments occur during a crisis when movement even to a local hospital or pharmacist is restricted and / or access to supplies or medical personnel is also limited OR non-existent.

Therefore, one has to be not only proficient in basic First Aid but also know which OTC products to store (not hoard !). Also, it’s advisable to possess medical kits and accessories for dressings.

Details of our OTC Medication Manual :

(a) CLICK THIS LINK to get your copy of this invaluable manual, immediately after purchase – day or night time !

(b) CLICK this link HERE in order to read and/or download for FREE the Index for this manual

Pharmacists are experts in medicines who can help you with minor health concerns. As qualified healthcare professionals, they can offer clinical advice and over-the-counter medicines for a range of minor illnesses, such as coughs, colds, sore throats, tummy trouble and aches and pains.

How do Pharmacists save lives ?

Pharmacists have been critical to the Covid-19 response and key workers in the health service.

Pharmacists help ensure the best patient outcomes.Because of this designation, doctors in other specialty areas rely on pharmacists to provide recommendations for medication to manage acute illnesses, chronic diseases, and quality of life care.

With increasing pressures on the health care system, expanding the pharmacist’s roles and abilities to provide more services is becoming more important than ever.

Medicine Box Ideas for Medication Storage

The box in which you store your medications, bandages et al must be easy to open, even in a stressful situation. At the same time, these medical supplies & equipment in the box must be well protected against harmful external influences.  So, for example, if tablets, capsules or bandages get wet or dirty, you can no longer use them.

It is also useful if the box is recognizable as a first aid storage box. A sticker (ideally fluorescent !) with a red or a green cross. Alternatively, opt for a transparent box, so that anyone can immediately see what’s inside.

Store your medication box in an accessible place which is familiar to ALL senior family members but at the same time secured from infants and toddlers.

Alternatively, Funly Mee Vintage First Aid Medication Box for Home. Characteristic Red with White Cross, Tin Metal Medicine Storage Box:

• Durable red metal first aid box with Side carrying handles
• Removable tray and inside compartments will keep your essential items organized
• Ideal for storing your medicine in style.(The tin box is empty. The items shown in the picture are not included. )
• Perfect for keeping your home clean and tidy, with a minimum of fuss
• Measures 12.6 x 8.3 x 7.7 (inches)

• CLICK THIS LINK to go to the product Amazon.com web page.

Alternatively, you can visit your amazon country website page by clicking on the appropiate link from the table below.

Amazon Country	Web Page Link
Canada	Click Here
UK	Click Here
Italy	Click Here
Germany	Click Here

Finally, below is another comparison table of two other recommended medicine storage containers.

COVID-19 : Part 1 Signs & Symptoms. CLICK HERE

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