COVID-19 is getting more and more serious. Social distancing is practiced, masks are worn, and sanitizers are stored. However, those precautions might not be enough as coronavirus can potentially be airborne. This virus is transmitted through not much liquid, but droplets, such as those through sneezing or coughing. With some research we know that coronavirus can stick to many surfaces, especially nonmental surfaces, for a long time, sometimes it can be for hours. However, according to WHO, COVID-19 can survive in the air in some specific temperature and humidity. That means, even if we’re not close to people who carry this virus, we might still be infected when they cough or sneeze in a distance. That could potentially explain the disease outbreak on the Diamond Princess cruise ship. Though the research has also explained that those results were done in the laboratory settings and its implication in the real world still needs more information, it will be important to take more precautions when caring for infected people, especially healthcare workers. When aerosol-generating procedures are done in a healthcare setting, it is possible to aerosolize those virus-containing particles and thus make them linger in the air. When in doubt, testing for disease positivity is still the backbone of response in dealing with COVID-19.
Sources
Lovelace, Higgins-Dunn, Feuer (2020). https://www.cnbc.com/2020/03/16/who-considers-airborne-precautions-for-medical-staff-after-study-shows-coronavirus-can-survive-in-air.html