I was in awe when i heard my school had been closed down and subsequently i should go home the following week. Today is the 37th day since Corona was diagnosed in a patient in Ghana after 3 months of its devastating effects on the Chinese populace. We all thought it could be contained in China and many even referred to it as the "Chinese Virus". In the early March, i realized there had been increase in prices of some supplies due to lack of materials. Many attributed it to the break in supply chain from China.
Picture Of My brother at the Hospital appropriately dressed to combat the virus
After the first diagnosis of Corona in Ghana, there has been many safety precautions urged by the Government for us all to abide to reduce the spread of the virus. The mode of transmission is contact of the viral particle on any of the openings of the bodies. The virus is believed to stay in the respiratory tract of an individual and can be easily aerosolised through coughing, sneezing and talking. As such, the primary mode of controlling the virus is by Isolation on two scale. Isolation of infected personnel and isolation of the total population. This isolation protocol has made many Governments to enact a lockdown protocol to prevent people from moving. Today Ghana has lifted its lockdown protocol as the government couldn't keep up with the economic toll the lockdown was bringing to the country. Our lives are in our hands now. 
As deadly as the virus sounds, popular articles and studies suggests that the Covid 19 virus is able to survive on surfaces for up-to 9 days and stay in the air for some few hours. As such, isolation for at least two weeks implies that, all possible contaminated surfaces and the air will be clear from the virus.
The second preventive measure urged by our government is to use Alcohol based Hand Sanitisers. The first time i heard of this preventive mechanism, i couldn't understand the logic behind it. I thought a virus is a particle which is inanimate as such it is actually dead outside a host. How then can you kill something which is already dead. I realized from experiments conducted on the Covid 19 virus that, alcohol as a potency destroy the protein and RNA that the virus is made up of. That is how it kills the virus and render it useless. But then the higher the concentration of the alcohol, the higher the effectiveness of it towards the virus. Sanitizers of alcohol concentration less than 60% often does little harm to the virus and as such people should go in for standard 80-99% alcohol base hand sanitizers. The price of hand sanitizers rose to 100% increment with the rise of this pandemic and many have resorted to home made sanitizers. I will advice we use commercial grade sanitizers to ensure optimum performance.
The high cost of hand sanitizers begs the question; what should the poor do? Proper hand washing is know to be highly effective against a range of viruses including the Covid 19 virus. Its either the soap breaks the protein membrane of the virus or the water washes it off your hands. So do not be in despair if you cant afford a hand sanitizer. Wash your hands rather under a flowing tap water with a good detergent.
To crown it all, a major route of entry for the virus is the nose and its through inhalation as it has been proven that the virus can stay active in the air for hours. The best way to protect your self and your family is to wear a proper nose mask which covers both your mouth and nose. It is imperative that you avoid touching your face during these times as you might be infecting yourself from previous contamination.
NB: The virus is real and many people have paid the price to confirm its virulence and mortality rate. Do not add up to the statistical figures. Stay safe and follow these precautions as close as possible. Better days are coming when we can go out freely and work. Lets hope for the vaccines or better still a divine intervention. Stay awesome
My name is Tuah Acheampong. A 5th year student at the University for Development Studies studying Medical Laboratory Science. Im also a part time photographer and a blogger who is very much enthusiastic about blockchains. I fell in love with crypto currency and starting blogging on steem. I share on current happenings, science, analysis and photography most of the time. Feel free to connect with me through my content.
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