What Is the Difference Between Self-Quarantine, Self-Isolation, and Proactive Quarantine?

[Laidback Al]

Some media reports are failing to distinguish between the meaning of isolation and quarantine during this pandemic. Here is a discussion on the different terminology.

Self- Quarantine
Self-quarantine refers to quarantining oneself after being in contact with a COVID-19 infected or presumed infected individual. This does not mean that the self-quarantined individual is infected, this can only be determined after the individual is tested. The goal of a self-quarantined individual is to ensure that they do not pass on the disease to others if they eventually develop the disease. People who self-quarantine generally do this at home.

Self-Isolation
Self-isolation refers to isolating oneself after exhibiting symptoms and testing positive for the COVID-19 disease. A person who is self-isolating is infected and will minimize the chances of passing the disease along to others by self-isolating. It is recommended that self-isolating people, people with symptoms or a confirmed COVID-19 infection, restrict their activities to their local household to protect public health.

Again, the reason for self-isolation is to protect the general public. However, in households with self-isolating individuals, chances of household members contracting the disease are greatly increased. All other household members need to take precautions and adjust behaviors to ensure that they remain infection free. Therefore, a self-isolating individual needs to isolate not just away from the general public but also away from all other household members if possible.

There is reporting from China that household self-isolation did not contain the spread of the disease. Household self-isolation often resulted in infecting other household members who were previously uninfected. The number of infections in China began to decrease when the isolation of sick individuals was occurring away from their households. China set up isolation centers where numerous infected people were housed together. Because all of these individuals were already infected, they were not at risk of spreading the coronavirus among themselves.

From a household perspective, a self-quarantined individual, a person who has been exposed to an infected person, must be treated as if they were infected as well. This would mean that no physical contact between the individual and other household members and that all household members need to take the same precautions and adjust behaviors that they would do to minimize the risk of infection from a confirmed case.

If multiple individuals in the same household have been exposed to infected individuals and are self-quarantining, each should be quarantined separately and away from others household members. If one of the self-quarantine individuals becomes sick they will not then infect other self-quarantined individuals who may or may not eventually be infected.

For households where there is more than one self-isolated person, individuals who are infected or presumed infected, these individuals can be self-isolated together. They are already infected. These individuals can provide care and support to each other, they do not need to be separated. However, all other household members need to take extra precautions to minimize the risk of infection from these individuals.

Proactive Quarantine
Proactive quarantine refers to a group of people, usually members of a household, who are greatly minimizing or restricting contact outside of the household group. When public health officials are saying “stay home” they mean households should be proactively quarantining. Proactive quarantines are not conducted to protect the general public from sick (self-isolating) or potentially sick (self-quarantining) individuals, proactive quarantine is design to minimize the the risk of infection to all household members from outside sources.

Because the coronavirus is now rapidly spreading, proactive quarantines among family groups is an effective way to slow the spread of the infection among households and perhaps protect high-risk individuals in the household from becoming infected.

[gsgs]

thanks.
That's the main difference that I found between successful China,South Korea,Singapore (Japan ?) and unsuccessful
Iran,Italy,USA,Europe, : Isolation centers, isolation clinics, isolation points rather than household isolation (except in safe, justified environments).
We know from 2007 H5N1 discussion, that this is sooo unpopular in USA.
Could be the reason why USA is doomed to fail (IMO).
Is there a chance that this is being changed, e.g. if Italy can't contain it ? (and Iran can now with this new measure)
It will be interesting to watch, what WHO says.

[Laidback Al]

There is reporting from China that household self-isolation did not contain the spread of the disease. Household self-isolation often resulted in infecting other household members who were previously uninfected. The number of infections in China began to decrease when the isolation of sick individuals was occurring away from their households. China set up isolation centers where numerous infected people were housed together. Because all of these individuals were already infected, they were not at risk of spreading the coronavirus among themselves.

Why Household Isolation of Infected Individuals is Dangerous

A West Jordan family says five people in the household contracted COVID-19, and the infection killed a 24-year-old daughter and sister.

Silvia Deyanira Melendez died Saturday at University Hospital, members of her family said. . .

Melendez’s father, Marcos, 54, began suffering symptoms about two weeks ago.

"When I talked to the doctor,” Marcos Melendez said in a phone interview Sunday, “she said if I had [symptoms] or anyone in my family had it, we're supposed to [assume] we're positive.”. . .

“We didn’t think it would ever happen to us,” Macias said of contracting the virus. “Out of our whole family, we didn’t think anybody would receive it.”

(link)

[Missouriwatcher]

If the virus is so contagious as to shut down a shopping mall in TX for one (positive) person walking through, wouldn't one suspect that if you lived in the same household you would have already been exposed even if the (positive) person were removed to an isolation center?

[Laidback Al]

If the virus is so contagious as to shut down a shopping mall in TX for one (positive) person walking through, wouldn't one suspect that if you lived in the same household you would have already been exposed even if the (positive) person were removed to an isolation center?

As noted in the report above, not everyone in the family contracted the disease. The goal of isolation is to keep infected people from transmitting the coronavirus to individuals who are not sick. Perhaps if the first sick individual, the father, had been isolated away from the family, maybe fewer people in the family would have been infected. Maybe his daughter would not have died. Sending sick people back home without trying to isolate them in facilities where they can get proper care almost certainly insures that other family members will become infected. In the case of this family it was death sentence for the daughter.

Four days ago, the United States (US) took over the lead in the number of COVID-19 cases around the world. Unless the US government institutes a national coordinated and coherent plan to contain and control this disease, including appropriate isolation measures, the number of cases and deaths in the US will continue to skyrocket.

On Thursday, we hit a grim watershed. The US overtook Italy and China as the country with the highest number of confirmed Covid-19 cases. This is a dire crisis and an extraordinary failure of President Donald Trump. Americans are suffering and dying because the Trump administration failed to act quickly and decisively to prevent the virus' spread. The US has now seen about 1,195 deaths and the number is rising rapidly.

(link)

[sharon sanders]

I think blaming one politician is not correct. This is a failure of our entire system. From A to Z. We lost an entire month.

Our media needs to stop doing this. Left vs. Right. Right vs. Left. I am sick and tired of it.

People are dying here.

One ridiculous meme voiced over and over again is that masks are not needed by the general public. This is a complete lie. And it is promoted by officials and politicians on both "sides of the isle".

The fact is that if less people transmit disease to others, then there are less health care workers that need masks themselves. We all need groceries. Essential workers need to show up for work. We can't all stay in our houses for the rest of the year....

Look to the Asian countries who have been able to do a much better job than the U.S. The difference is their mask policy. I think NOT ONE South Korean doctor has died.

Any barrier that keeps one person from spreading their germs to another is a positive.

This is an example that a policy - not any one politician - is endangering millions of people.

I really do not want to bring any politics into this. There is enough blame to go around. I am sure there will be hearings, commissions, tribunals when this is over for all of the facts to be displayed.

[sharon sanders]

I think blaming one politician is not correct. This is a failure of our entire system. From A to Z. We lost an entire month.

Our media needs to stop doing this. Left vs. Right. Right vs. Left. I am sick and tired of it.

People are dying here.

One ridiculous meme voiced over and over again is that masks are not needed by the general public. This is a complete lie. And it is promoted by officials and politicians on both "sides of the isle".

The fact is that if less people transmit disease to others, then there are less health care workers that need masks themselves. We all need groceries. Essential workers need to show up for work. We can't all stay in our houses for the rest of the year....

Look to the Asian countries who have been able to do a much better job than the U.S. The difference is their mask policy. I think NOT ONE South Korean doctor has died.

Any barrier that keeps one person from spreading their germs to another is a positive.

This is an example that a policy - not any one politician - is endangering millions of people.

I really do not want to bring any politics into this. There is enough blame to go around. I am sure there will be hearings, commissions, tribunals when this is over for all of the facts to be displayed.

Just one study on masks:


Disaster Med Public Health Prep. 2013 Aug;7(4):413-8. doi: 10.1017/dmp.2013.43.


Testing the efficacy of homemade masks: would they protect in an influenza pandemic?

Davies A¹, Thompson KA, Giri K, Kafatos G, Walker J, Bennett A.Author information

Abstract

OBJECTIVE:


This study examined homemade masks as an alternative to commercial face masks.

METHODS:


Several household materials were evaluated for the capacity to block bacterial and viral aerosols. Twenty-one healthy volunteers made their own face masks from cotton t-shirts; the masks were then tested for fit. The number of microorganisms isolated from coughs of healthy volunteers wearing their homemade mask, a surgical mask, or no mask was compared using several air-sampling techniques.

RESULTS:


The median-fit factor of the homemade masks was one-half that of the surgical masks. Both masks significantly reduced the number of microorganisms expelled by volunteers, although the surgical mask was 3 times more effective in blocking transmission than the homemade mask.

CONCLUSION:


Our findings suggest that a homemade mask should only be considered as a last resort to prevent droplet transmission from infected individuals, but it would be better than no protection.


PMID: 24229526 DOI: 10.1017/dmp.2013.43



----------------------------------------------------

We have been lied to - "BY THE POWERS THAT BE". And this is criminal. Like I said - there is PLENTY of blame to go around.

One of the most egregious lies is how great the China gov has been..so "honest", and everything....

We need to help each other now.....tribunals later.....

[bertrand789]

Merci Sharon, j'avais écrit ceci le 13 mars :
13 mars 2020 à 19:57
Ce serait un bonheur d’échanger avec vous, en direct. Il vous manque des éléments notamment sur ce qui s’est passé en Italie. Si je partage le fait que des erreurs graves ont été et sont commises en France, soyez indulgent, vu le comportement imbécile de Trump et de beaucoup d’autres. C’est le type d’agent parfait pour destabiliser toutes les organisations qui n’ont pas en elles la culture de la science des dangers. Faire piloter une crise de cette nature par des politiques imbus de la science des risques va produire ce qui est … Mais, pour aller plus loin, cette crise est nécessaire et souhaitable, vu la vision politique, de nos représentants. Prévenir ou avertir ne sers à rien: ils doivent vivre cette crise pour, peut être, enfin entrevoir … J’ai connu la crise de la vache folle de l’intérieur , des textes d’une valeur inestimable ont été produit. Mais depuis le jeu consiste à les détricoter. On m’a envoyé ce texte à lire, je remercie celui qui a fait ce texte et celui qui me l’a transmis…

https://necpluribusimpar.net/lepidem...astre-annonce/

Si je suis les ébats au pays qui a su, soit disant, inventer la méthode HACCP , c'est d'abord, car vous les américains, vous nous surprenez toujours...

[Laidback Al]

I think blaming one politician is not correct. This is a failure of our entire system. From A to Z. We lost an entire month.

Our media needs to stop doing this. Left vs. Right. Right vs. Left. I am sick and tired of it.

People are dying here. ...


This is an example that a policy - not any one politician - is endangering millions of people.

I really do not want to bring any politics into this. There is enough blame to go around. I am sure there will be hearings, commissions, tribunals when this is over for all of the facts to be displayed.

I agree no one politician is responsible. But US government officials, elected and appointed, have a solemn duty and responsibility for protecting the health and well-being of everyone in the country. It is the government that exist today that is responsible for providing clear and accurate guidance, direction, and leadership. The government from five years ago is not to blame for the mishandling of this crisis in 2020.

Three incubation periods passed before the government took any serious action to contain and control the outbreak. The first case in the US was identified on January 22, 2020. At the end of three incubation periods later on March 4, 2020, there only about 100 cases spread thought the country, a manageable number to isolate and contain this outbreak. The government completely failed to control this outbreak at the start and the US now leads the world in number of COVID-19 cases. What must be made abundantly clear to the general public, is that the US was not ready for a pandemic (link).

Some countries including South Korea, Singapore, and Japan did an excellent job of controlling their outbreaks. Other countries such as Spain and Italy failed dramatically to control the outbreaks in their county. As I noted elsewhere (link) there are things that every government should do to confront a pandemic. It was a failure of the US government to act swiftly and decisively to control this outbreak through honest messaging, having a solid plan to protect health care workers, ensuring adequate medical supplies and facilities (including masks, not just for medical personnel but for the general population as well) and having a working plan to protect the uninfected. Sending infected and highly contagious individuals back home to infect other members of the household is part of the reason why US cases have skyrocketed.

As bertand789 noted above, this pandemic may be a wake-up call for US citizens. Hopefully the survivors of this pandemic will demand more pandemic preparation from their government representatives. There is no reason to believe that because we survive this pandemic there will not be another one in the future.