Do you live with older family members? Here’s how to keep them safe from coronavirus
Older adults are advised to keep their distance from others during the coronavirus pandemic, but that may be difficult to do at home.
About one in five U.S. homes are multigenerational, meaning the adults who live there represent at least two age groups, the Pew Research Center found in 2018.
As the coronavirus spreads, people older than 65 or those with medical conditions may be more likely to get seriously sick from the disease, health officials say.
So how can you help protect everyone in your family, from the youngest generation to the oldest?
To help stop the spread of the virus, older people should stay home and keep a 6-foot distance from people who are ill, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
At home, health officials recommend families make preparations in case older relatives have to stay indoors. That means they should have weeks of medications and other necessities on hand.
In Missouri, one household with people ages 3 to 96 is practicing social distancing and hand washing in its plan to protect against the virus, NPR and Kaiser Health News reported.
“With all of us in the same home, I feel like I’m the one that’s kind of guarding everybody,” Wilma Walker, 63, told the news outlets.
Though most known coronavirus patients are adults, kids can spread the disease to others, according to health officials. Families should consider measures to keep children away from older adults who live with them, the CDC says.
“If someone at higher risk for COVID-19 will be providing care (older adult, such as a grandparent or someone with a chronic medical condition), limit your children’s contact with other people,” the CDC said on its website.
In all homes, washing hands and disinfecting surfaces can also help protect against the virus.
If older adults live in another house or at a care facility, it may be best to postpone visiting them, according to health officials.
Across the country, nursing homes and assisted living centers have restricted visitors, and some facilities have experienced coronavirus outbreaks.
