Unless you live under a rock you probably already know that the COVID-19 outbreak has reached Irish shores. The number of confirmed cases is small but is said to increase. Let’s not panic buy bread, rashers and toilet roll just yet. Follow daily updates from The World Health Organisation and start putting basic preventative action in place right away.

Wash your hands often – kill viruses with warm water, soap or alcohol based gel.

Keep away – stay 1 meter away from people who sneeze or cough in order to avoid droplets.

Don’t touch your eyes, nose or mouth – your hands touch many surfaces and items, limiting the action of touch your eyes, nose or mouth will decrease your risk of infection.

Seek medical advice – if you are feeling flu like symptoms call your doctor before going anywhere. Do not go to work.

Stay informed – there is a lot of information out there but for the most reliable and up to date data on the situation visit the following sites:

https://www.who.int/emergencies/diseases/novel-coronavirus-2019/advice-for-public

and

https://www.gov.ie/en/campaigns/c36c85-covid-19-coronavirus/?referrer=/en/news/e58285-the-novel-coronavirus-2019-ncov/