This article was published on: 07/3/21 12:13 PM
Last updated on August 3rd, 2021 at 12:17 pm
During the currently ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, you often use the terms quarantine and isolation, sometimes even interchangeably. But, what do they exactly mean? And how are they different?
Quarantine is the action of restricting the movement of and separating people who were possibly exposed to an infectious disease, in this case, the SARS-CoV-2 virus to see if they become ill. People who quarantine may or may not show suspected symptoms.
In the case of COVID-19, this means to stay at home, separated from other people for a minimum of 14 days, which is the incubation period of the virus. During this time, the person must not leave their house for any purpose, including grocery shopping, eating out, worship activities, recreational activities, etc except if they need healthcare in which case they should contact emergency services to transport them so they do not put anyone else at risk. They must continuously monitor their health, checking for common symptoms like fever, cough, chest pain, loss of taste and smell, etc. If symptoms appear, they must contact a doctor.
The term is also being used to describe staying at home during a government-sanctioned order. While this can be recognized as quarantining since it is a preventative measure due to the fact that we don’t know who has come into contact with the virus, the correct term is a lockdown. A lockdown is an action of staying home for safety as it has been advised by the state.
Isolation, on the other hand, refers to separating the people who are infected with COVID-19 from those who are not. Isolation is done to protect the people who have not been afflicted by the infectious disease, especially if they are especially at risk due to old age or being immunocompromised.
COVID-19 patients who are self-isolating must ensure that they do not come into direct contact with anyone else who has not tested positive. They must remain at least 6 feet apart from all such people. They must not share a bathroom, utensils, clothes, medicines, bedding, towels, etc with those not infected. Any items they use must be thoroughly washed and disinfected before being used by another person. Any tissues they use to cough or sneeze in and other waste must be packed tightly in a garbage bag and disposed of separately.
Thus, the basic difference between quarantine and isolation lies in whether or not the person is knowingly infected with the virus.
