With the number of COVID-positive cases on the rise in Sri Lanka and the world over, healthcare facilities and quarantine centers are overloaded leading many global health authorities have directed citizens to self-quarantine at home. If you are in a line of work that leaves you constantly exposed to the public for instance, going home to quarantine should be a possible option for you. This can be for anyone from an airline crew flying Sri Lankans back home to a deliver fleet ensuring homes are stocked during lockdowns.

If you or any of your family members need to quarantine at home from time to time, there are several simple steps you can take to reorganize your home that will help facilitate a safe and smooth quarantine:

A. Stock-up and share

When you’re stocking up your home for a lockdown, make sure to have plenty of immune boosting foods and herbs on your grocery list, including packs of panpanguwa. Depending on how many are at home and how many are in quarantine, create small batches of fruit and other healthy items and allocate a batch to each person.  

B. Decluttering and rearrange

Ensuring there is plenty of space for people to move around without having to engage with each other in close proximity is important. If you have a lot of furniture, it might be time to reorganize your rooms to create more space for mobility. This might even mean having to put away large, unnecessary pieces of furniture. Decluttering your spaces is also important. Stack up old newspapers, knickknacks and unnecessary ornaments and put them away too.

C. Create a home office

Even when people are self-quarantining, they might need to work or require a space to spend time on their devices, read a book and unwind. If you don’t already have a home-office, dedicate a corner of your living room or veranda/porch for this purpose. Place a desk or small table and chair in the corner and attempt to make the space pleasant by decorating it with the person’s favorite things.

D. Schedule and cordon

When there are common spaces in the house that everyone has to use at some point in the day, its best to set up a schedule for each person in the household. This will help shared spaces like bathrooms and kitchens to be used by everyone while still maintaining social distancing at home. You can also cordon off spaces and allocate them to each person so that they have different spaces to spend time in over a period of days.

E. Screen talk

We always complain about the excess time we spend on our devices, but during a quarantine, it can be your only link to the outside world. When you’re self-quarantining at home and aren’t able to spend time with family around the dinner table anymore, it can feel strange. So open a chat group for family members or download a game you can all play together while being stuck and hope and separate from one another.