On 11th March, the World Health Organisation officially announced the spread of novel coronavirus (COVID-19) taking the shape of a global pandemic, sending a fresh wave of panic across global communities. Supposedly originating in Wuhan, China, the virus has now spread over 120 countries around the world. It has left millions of people affected with a casualty of around 6000 globally.
India has also succumbed to the blows of this global pandemic. The stock market is suffering a significant shock, schools and colleges have been suspended, public gatherings are now restricted. In a nutshell, this has caused a social and economic disruption in the country.
The crisis has not spared the kids and their daily routine as well as schools and tutorials have been shut down and their movements restricted.
Tips Parents should Follow During this Crisis
Coronavirus has spread panic among parents as they are concerned about the health conditions of their kids. They are doing everything they can to ensure their child’s safety. Therefore, here are some tips that you as a parent can follow to prevent your kids from getting infected.
1. Maintain Hygiene
According to WHO, Covid-19 primarily spreads through respiratory droplets, and there is a risk of catching such droplets through inhaling. However, there is a more substantial risk of getting contaminated through various surfaces like doorknobs, tables, handrails, etc. where such droplets may have settled. Additionally, WHO has also said that these viruses can be alive on such surfaces for a few hours to several days.
Thus, maintaining personal hygiene is crucial during this period, and WHO is also emphasising on it. Properly washing your hands is the first step towards it. Apart from the World Health Organisation, medical experts are also emphasising on this point and asking everyone to wash their hands at regular intervals.
You can use soap and normal water to wash your hands. Medical experts are stating that you should scrub your hands for 20 seconds to eliminate the chances of this germ spreading from one person to another.
Hand sanitizers are also useful in this scenario, but only if they have at least 60% alcohol in them. However, if your hands are already dirty, and then chances are sanitizers will not work. Thus, hand washing is recommended by medical experts.
2. Keep Your Kids Indoors
As WHO has specified in its recent reports, public gatherings can cause coronavirus to spread quickly. Therefore, it is not an ideal situation to let your kids stay outdoors during this period. It increases the chance of coming in contact with other affected individuals. Since you will be keeping your kids indoors for the time being; make sure you have enough amenities available to keep them engaged.
One such amenity can be online tutorial classes provided by Vedantu, a leading e-learning provider in the country. Since schools are closed, and tutorial centres are also likely to suspend classes, students may not study on their own. On top of that, with exams around the corner, they need to stay prepared. These online classes do not require kids to go outside; they can stay at home and join such classes via their laptops, mobile phones or tablets.
3. Consult a Medical Expert in Case of any Symptoms
The coronavirus symptoms include –
Fever
Cough
An ache in the throat
Runny nose
Difficulty in breathing in severe cases.
As mentioned by WHO the symptoms of Coronavirus are very common to that of the common cold and often difficult to segregate. Thus, if your kids are showing any such signs, especially high fever and continuous coughing, then you must consult a doctor at the earliest.
Parents should know that no specific coronavirus treatment has been found yet. Thus, WHO has stated the following measures that individuals can follow –
Drink plenty of liquid to stay hydrated.
Take rest and sleep properly.
Take a hot shower in case of sore throat or coughs.
Even though there are no treatments available, you should consult a doctor and get the necessary medical tests done to make sure whether your kid is infected with coronavirus or not.
Furthermore, it would help if you stay away from the different remedies circulating in social media and must not take any medicine based on that. Such fake news is causing more distress rather than actual incidents.
4. Improving Immunity
Last but not least, enhancing your children’s immunity can help them to deal with coronavirus better. The immune system is the first line of defence that helps our body to defeat such a virus organically. Thus, improving this system or bolstering is beneficial both in the short and long term.The immune system can be improved in multiple ways,such as
Exercising regularly.
Following a healthy diet like eating more vegetables and fruits.
Getting adequate sleep.
During this national health emergency, the central and state government around the country has issued statements asking schools and colleges to shut down classes and seminars till the end of this month. Recently, the Government of Delhi, Himachal Pradesh, Haryana, Karnataka, Kerala, Bihar, Odisha, Uttar Pradesh, etc. have suspended classes in schools and colleges around the states.
This suspension of classes is going to jeopardise the daily study routine of young students. Additionally, students who have exams have been left in a position of distress. However, students can prepare for their exams from the comfort of their home by opting for e-learning platforms like Vedantu. Students or parents can install this app and register for the live interactive classes to keep the preparation for their exams on track.
How is Vedantu Helping Students in this Situation?
Vedantu, one of the most prominent e-learning companies in India, has stepped forward in this situation to help students. Students can install their app or visit their website and perform a free registration to gain access to their live classes.
Vedantu has introduced live and interactive classes free of cost for the students. This initiative aims to help students to prepare for their upcoming or on-going exams. Additionally, Vedantu is also assisting students with free study materials on various topics. Also, a student can download NCERT Solutions from Class 1 to 12 on Vedantu.
