Learn How to Practise Social Distancing

You’ve probably heard those two words mentioned more times these past few days than the rest of your life, and you’re wondering: what exactly is social distancing?

Well, this is the idea:

The coronavirus needs people to spread to other people. That means for someone to get it, they have to be in contact with an infected person.

What this means is that the best way to avoid not only getting it, but also infecting other people, and ensuring its spread, is by limiting our interactions with people.

How can we limit our interactions with people?

We’re in Nigeria, so we realise this will be more difficult than places like America. There are no credit cards to spend on much needed groceries here, so we’ll have to keep going out to get food or fuel or kerosene. Also, public transport here is a very, well, intimate affair.

What we can do, guys, is to avoid going out as much as possible. Let’s not go where we don’t have to absolutely be. Let us stay inside our homes until we need to go out. If there is no absolute need, please stay inside.

It’s also important that all employers allow their staff work from home whenever it is possible. Please, if you’re an employer of labour, it is imperative that you let your employees work from their homes. If you can’t afford this, then make your work space as sanitary as possible. There’s nothing like too much hand sanitiser. Provide excess hand wash. Let people avoid physical contact unless it is absolutely necessary. Social distancing also demands a space of 6 feet between humans, so that when one sneezes or coughs, another party doesn’t come into contact with the droplets. Try as much as possible to enforce this in your offices. Please. No hugs. No handshakes.

If you have to go into work, let work be the only place you go out of your home for. Home to work. Work to home. It’s difficult, guys, but we have to at lease try.

Try as much as possible to avoid touching surfaces. So many of us have to take danfos and BRTs and Ubers and okadas to work. Wear gloves! Forget how ridiculous you’ll look, please, wear gloves and face masks. DO NOT touch your face. Let it itch. You can’t die from itching.

Please, please, please guys. This is the only way we can beat this virus. If you’ve only just returned from a foreign country, please be responsible and self-isolate. Even if you don’t feel sick. An overwhelming number of people do not show symptoms for the virus, but can still spread it. Stay in your house. Protect not only yourself but those you love. It may seem like a little thing, but the effects are far-reaching and extremely consequential.

Please, guys. Stay safe. We have to come together to think of ways to implement social distancing in a country like ours. If you have any ideas, drop them in the comment section.