Egypt’s Health Ministry tells you what to do if you came in contact with coronavirus patient

CAIRO – 26 December 2020: As the number of coronavirus cases in Egypt is remarkably increasing, the Egyptian Health Ministry is giving some advice to the contacts of coronavirus patients, to avoid spreading the virus, in case they are infected too.

The ministry says its guidelines should be followed for 14 days after the last time the contacts dealt with the coronavirus patient.

- The first advice is that contacts should self-isolate. Prepare for yourself a good, well-ventilated and a clean room and avoid any visits.

- Cover your mouth and nose with a tissue while sneezing or coughing, get rid of the used tissue in the wastebasket and immediately wash your hands with water and soap.

- Avoid transferring from the quarantine place to any other place and make sure the areas you may be sharing with your family members, like the bathroom or the kitchen, are well-ventilated and have open windows.

- You should wear a mask that suits your face, especially when getting in contact with someone, then get rid of it in a plastic bag, close it, and throw it in the wastebasket.

- It is better to have one of your family members, who enjoys good health and is not suffering from any chronic diseases, to take care of you.

- You should stay at home throughout your quarantine period.

The Egyptian Health Ministry said 1,133 new coronavirus cases were detected over Friday, upping the total number of confirmed cases to 130,126.

In a statement, Spokesman for the Health Ministry Khaled Megahed said 49 patients have died from the virus over the past 24 hours, raising the death toll to 7,309.

As many as 511 patients were discharged from isolation hospitals after receiving necessary medical care, taking the number of recovered cases to 108,985 so far, the spokesman said.

Last week, Health Minister Hala Zayed officially announced that Egypt is facing the second wave of coronavirus.

The Cabinet, in response, announced further measures to curb the spread of the novel virus, including cancelling the New Year celebrations and pledging tough penalties against hotels violating the decision.

The decisions also included imposing an immediate fine on people not wearing face masks in closed places and public transportation.

Cabinet spokesman Nader Saad, in remarks to media, said the ventilator use rose to 42 percent and that Egypt has prepared the same number of hospitals for quarantine as that it prepared during the peak of the first wave.