We always think that social interaction is good for our well-being.  But some-times we need to do things which are out of the way like social distance. Now a day we need to maintain the social distance for us and our society. It doesn’t mean that you totally disconnect with your relatives or society. It means that we need to maintain physical distance with each and every one, thanks to technology which help us to connect us with our near and dear once. We can contact with them through video calls.

Social distancing includes ways to stop or slow the spread of infectious diseases. It means less contact between you and other people. Social distancing is important because COVID-19 is most likely to spread from person-to-person through:

· direct close contact with a person while they are infectious or in the 24 hours before their symptoms appeared

· close contact with a person with a confirmed infection who coughs or sneezes, or

· touching objects or surfaces (such as door handles or tables) contaminated from a cough or sneeze from a person with a confirmed infection, and then touching your mouth or face. So, the more space between you and others, the harder it is for the virus to spread.

If you are sick, stay away from others – that is the most important thing you can do. You should also practise good hand and sneeze/cough hygiene:

· wash your hands frequently with soap and water, before and after eating, and after going to the toilet · cover your cough and sneeze, dispose of tissues, and use alcohol-based hand sanitiser, and

· if unwell, avoid contact with others (stay more than 4 feet from people).

As well as these, you can start a range of social distancing and low cost hygiene actions now. These simple, common sense actions help reduce risk to you and to others. They will help to slow the spread of disease in the community – and you can use them every day – in your home, workplace, school and while out in public.

Events where a large number of people are in one place can increase the risk of transmission of viruses. If you are organising a gathering, consider whether you can postpone, reduce size/frequency or cancel the event. If you decide to go ahead, you should assess the risks and reconsider any aspect that may increase risk of transmission.

To reduce the spread of germs:

· Sanitise your hands wherever possible, including entering and leaving buildings

· Use tap and pay rather than handling money

· Try and travel at quiet times and try to avoid crowds

· Public transport workers and taxi drivers should open vehicle windows where possible, and regularly clean an

Dr Anshul Mahajan 

Consultant psychiatrist