The sudden outbreak and fast - unexpected and underestimated - spread of the new Coronavirus has indeed stunned millions of people everywhere who weren't at all prepared to face such a disease especially since the virus is of unknown origin and has caused hundreds of deaths til date in many countries. The Coronavirus has stirred up various and unequal public reactions that range from resorting to the well-known social media outlets to educate and advise people on how to avoid infection, to creating memes, caricatures and songs to encourage people for example to wash their hands as correctly as possible! Most health experts, doctors and pharmacists keep on stressing that washing the hands properly for over 20 seconds, couple of times a day, is the most effective and important way to avoid the possible Corona infection.
Of course, washing your hands correctly isn't the only defensive measure you should undertake; it's recommended that you avoid crowded places like dense supermarkets, parties, malls and college activities in an attempt to lessen your chances of encountering or engaging with someone who's in fact infected with Corona. In addition, you should not touch public surfaces including door knobs, stair rails, water faucets, elevator buttons and other similar surfaces.
However, washing - and drying - your hands properly remains the most important of all steps in such a difficult situation. Most people are ignorant of the right process of washing the hands which seems a bit unreasonable since social media apps - YouTube for example - are full of tutorials - step-by-step - instructions and mini clips showing how to wash your hands thoroughly without missing any important part - the thumbs!
The first thing you should start considering is that you shouldn't definitely spend the 20 seconds washing the most obvious parts of your hands; you must start paying more attention to your thumbs, the back of your hands, your wrists, between your fingers, your fingertips and under your fingernails of course. And don't forget about the drying process as well because paper towels are considered to be the best and most hygienic way to dry your hands without picking up any germs or bacteria all over again!
People out there are thankfully starting to pay more attention to washing their hands, but many of them are either in a hurry or they end up picking germs and bacteria immediately after washing their hands because they touched the faucet! So, you should keep in mind that you must spend more than 20 seconds washing your hands correctly from wrists to fingernails, focusing on all parts mentioned above. And if you happen to carry a hand sanitizer, check the product's label to ensure it contains more than 60% alcohol and do not ever neglect washing your hands multiple times a day even if you have a hand sanitizer or disinfectant wipes which come as a plan B - in cases where water and soap are unfortunately unavailable.