Abstract
.In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, in addition to the more routine public health measures, many countries have implemented “lockdowns”—closing borders, restricting international travel, and placing severe limitations on individual movement and group gatherings. While lockdowns may be an important tool to limit transmission, they come at a potentially great cost with regard to economic impact, mental health consequences, and increased morbidity and mortality from non–COVID-19 diseases. Furthermore, implementation of the required draconian measures may be difficult in some settings because of logistical, economic, and sociocultural impediments, especially in many low- and middle-income countries. Governments and health authorities must chart a course on how to “unlock” or control transmission where lockdowns are not feasible. “Precision physical distancing”—distancing tailored and optimized to specific physical, social, cultural, political, and economic contexts and to specific groups and settings—is proposed and discussed here as an important tool in the control of COVID-19. It has the advantages of being low cost, adaptable to diverse sociocultural and economic settings through community ownership and local action, and more easily monitored and potentially enforced than less precise measures. Precision physical distancing can be one important component of a sustainable long-term solution that is proportionate to the risk yet does not have a disproportionate impact on society and the economy, allowing a partial return to normal activities, with the community as an essential partner.
Highlights
The world is presently engulfed in the pandemic of COVID19, with millions of cases and hundreds of thousands of deaths worldwide
Precision physical distancing can be one important component of a sustainable long-term solution that is proportionate to the risk yet does not have a disproportionate impact on society and the economy, allowing a partial return to normal activities, with the community as an essential partner
In Wuhan, China, where COVID-19 is thought to have first emerged, all journeys in and out of the city were banned; public transport suspended; private cars barred from roads; businesses, schools, and universities closed; and severe limits placed on individual mobility outside of residences
Summary
The world is presently engulfed in the pandemic of COVID19, with millions of cases and hundreds of thousands of deaths worldwide. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, in addition to the more routine public health measures, many countries have implemented “lockdowns”—closing borders, restricting international travel, and placing severe limitations on individual movement and group gatherings.
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More From: The American journal of tropical medicine and hygiene
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