COVID-19 More ways to reduce your risk If you’re prepared to put in some extra effort, there are more ways in which you may be able to reduce the chances that you’ll be infected with coronavirus. Here are a few ideas to consider: • When using urinals, give yourself lots of room – or use a stall. As a partially enclosed space, the stall provides a measure of protection that urinals don’t. • Wait until the washroom is empty. The ultimate in social distancing, this avoids one of the most commonmeans of spreading the virus – by being close to an infected person. • Use a disposable cover on the toilet seat. This puts a barrier between you and a frequently touched surface and helps to limit the number of surfaces that come into contact with your hands. • “Flush and run.”One expert recommends this as a strategy if you’re in a washroom without lids on the toilets, as it puts some distance between you and the spray that comes out of the toilet when you flush. • Sanitize your hands after leaving the washroom. It’s an opportunity to get germs off of your hands once you’re away from the washroom. An extra 20 seconds of sanitizing could be your ounce of prevention. • Bypass public washrooms entirely. You don’t need an RV to skip public washrooms, although this won’t be for everyone (see “Worst-case scenarios”). Worst-case scenarios What happens if you need to “go” …and there’s nowhere nearby togo? Or if the available washroom looks unsanitary or too crowded for comfort during a pandemic? You can resort to the traditional solutions (trees, bushes, hiding behind your car on the side of the highway), but there are more modern (and slightly less embarrassing) options available. If you have room in your vehicle, you can purchase what is known as a “travel toilet” or “camping toilet.” The simplest models are essentially a bucket with a toilet seat that fits on top and liner bags to collect the waste. There are also more sophisticated (and expensive) models with waste tanks. For the space-challenged, you can purchase disposable urinals and “solid waste collections kits” such as those made by Travel John. Both toilets and disposable products can be found at camping supply stores. A final word You can’t eliminate your risk of becoming infected with COVID-19, but there are plenty of things which you can do to limit that risk. It may be easiest to think in terms of driving. Almost no one stops driving because they might be in a collision, but most people take steps to keep themselves safe: wearing a seat belt, following the rules of the road and driving carefully in dangerous conditions. So do your research, decide on your safety measures and enjoy feeling warm during the coldest months of the year. Why not hand dryers? At first glance, it may seem that hand dryers are a more convenient and environmentally sound choice than paper towels: they never run out of hot air, and there are no paper towels to go into the garbage. Unfortunately, it looks as though hand dryers aren’t such a good idea after all. The original type of dryer requires people to push a button to activate the hot air, which is one more potentially contaminated surface to touch. Research suggests that hand dryers may blow germs from elsewhere in the washroom directly onto your hands. In addition, people may need to line up to use the dryers, which means that they are spending more time close together in a small, enclosed space. Touch less While you can’t avoid touching everything in a public washroom, there are ways to reduce the number of surfaces that come into contact with your hands. Put your best foot forward: instead of grabbing the handle of a stall door, you can use your foot or knee to swing it open. • Hip, hip, hurray: once inside the stall, use your hip (instead of your hand) to bump the door shut. • Hello, elbow: use your elbow to slide the latch into place. • Go undercover: wearing gloves is a surefire way to minimize contact with surfaces. Use disposable gloves, though, because you’ll need to toss them in the trash and wash your hands. • Paper it over: paper towels can be a useful way to cover your hands. They’re best used to protect your hands from bacteria on the washroom door handle as you exit. And remember, the one thing you should never touch in a public washroom is your face. If your hands are contaminated with coronavirus particles and you touch your mouth, eyes or nose, you could become infected with COVID-19. The worst offender If you’ve ever wondered what’s the germiest object in a public washroom, wonder no more. Scientists have studied this question and have learned that the surface with the greatest number of bacteria is… the sink!There were about 50 times more bacteria on the sink than the second-most contaminated object. This makes sense, because people touch the sink after they have touched many other germ-ridden objects and before they wash their hands. CSANews | SUMMER 2020 | 43
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