COVID patients without symptoms to quarantine at home for 14 days

Patients with locally acquired COVID-19 showing no symptoms, and with no underlying disease or obesity, will now be under a 14-day home quarantine, according to new guidelines released by the HCM City Department of Health on Thursday.

New COVID-19 cases with manageable underlying diseases will also be quarantined at home for 14 days. The new guidelines aim to reduce the overload of COVID-19 patients at healthcare facilities and increase the quality of treatment for COVID-19 patients with moderate and severe symptoms in hospitals.

A COVID-19 patient under home quarantine must have a separate room with windows as well as a separate toilet, a trash can with closed lid, and trash bags.

Separate rooms are not required if members in a family are all COVID-19 patients.

Food and essential supplies must be put on a table placed in front of the patient’s separate room.

Hand sanitiser and disinfectants for surfaces, salt water for gargling, medical masks, thermometer, fever medicine, and vitamins should be available in the quarantine room.

COVID-19 patients under home quarantine are required to always wear medical masks except when eating, drinking and washing. Masks are changed twice a day. Patients must wash hands thoroughly with soap and water or alcohol-based disinfectant before handling the masks.

Their temperature must be measured at least twice a day and a health declaration must be made at least once a day via the electronic health declaration application.

They need to eat nutritious food, drink a lot of water, exercise gently and do breathing exercises for at least 15 minutes daily.

They must call local medical workers if they have a fever of more than 38 degrees Cesius, cough, sore throat, diarrhoea, loss of taste or smell, chest pain or breathing difficulty (unable to take a breath and hold it for 10 seconds).