Deborah Kendrick
Some fifteen years ago, I was in another city for some training needed for a contract assignment. After lunch, another woman came into the women’s room and saw me putting away my toothbrush. “Awwww, that’s cute,” she opined.
People had commented on my not-quite-obsession with hygiene and germs before, but no one had ever called it "cute."
For decades, I have carried those little foil-wrapped wipes in my purse and briefcase, kept them in my desk, and figured out ways to “see” what I need to see without contaminating myself.
Now, with this hideous worldwide scare, maybe some of my minuscule work-arounds can benefit you. People with visual impairments are, by default, in more constant contact with people and things than the average person in possession of 20/20 eyesight. We have to touch walls and doors and objects and other people’s hands and elbows. Here are some ideas to lessen the risk.
Public Bathrooms
I’m starting here because, even if you are staying in your home, you still might need to use one and, well, I’ve always wanted to share these ideas with other blind people.
We are told that the best way to keep away the coronavirus is to wash our hands. But when you wash your hands, you aren’t guaranteed a clean flight from start to finish.
Here are the methods used by me, a blind germaphobe, for years:
- Entering the unfamiliar space, use ears and feet to find open stall.
- If touching is necessary, use the back of your forearm to see if the door is open.
- When you close the door from the inside, try to hook that latch with the back of your hand or with only a finger or two.
- Use backs of hands or forearms to locate tissue holder and such.
- If you’re able, stand on one foot and use the other to stretch behind you and locate the flush handle.
- At the sink, wash your hands following the CDC recommended thorough scrub of front, back, nails, and wrists for 20 to 30 seconds of washing.
- If the faucet is not the automatic kind, grab a paper towel to turn it off.
- Use your feet to find the trash can and use another paper towel to locate the door handle on your way out.
Phew. One bathroom adventure fully executed without touching anything!
Going Places
We are all staying at home as much as we can. If you do have to go somewhere, many public transit systems have cut back on their service. You’re probably safer in a paratransit vehicle (fewer passengers) or rideshare car anyway.
When your magic chariot of choice arrives, don a pair of latex gloves for finding your way to the vehicle and inside. (Put an extra pair of latex gloves and a plastic or ziplock bag for stashing the soiled ones in your carry bag of choice.)
If it’s a car, you are going to touch, at the very least: the outside handle, inside handle, seat belt, and seat. If it’s a van, like a paratransit van for wheelchairs, you will touch the hand rail and a few seatbacks.
Use those gloves when you arrive at your destination too. Even if your aim Is spot on for grabbing the handle of the building’s door and internal office doors, the gloves will keep any germs living there from direct contact with your skin.
Just be sure that while you wear those gloves that your hands NEVER touch any part of your face!
Getting Around
As people with visual impairments, we often need to be close to another human for wayfinding. If you need to take an elbow, pop one of those gloves on your hand again or clean your hands with sanitizer as soon as you reach your destination. Did your guide sneeze into that elbow? Or did he/she use the elbow to open a bathroom door?
If you are low vision and just need to stay close, be mindful of the six-foot distance recommendation if you can.
Remember to wipe down your mobility tools, too. Your white cane and guide dog harness can collect lots of disgusting droplets without your knowledge.
Food At Your Door
If you have decided that you are just going to avoid going anywhere, including the grocery store, you do have options.
Delivery services such as Instacart and Shipt enable you to order groceries and supplies from your smartphone or computer and have them delivered to your door. If the shopper brings them in for you, keep the six-foot distance rule if you can. The shopper may want you to sign the tablet and, if you ordered wine with your groceries, show your ID. Try getting the ID out ahead of time and placing it on a table near the door. Some might be willing to leave items by your door if you are comfortable carrying them in.
If you just want to order a hot meal or your favorite fast food to help keep a restaurant in business, Uber Eats, Door Dash, and others are still working. Again, if you feel more comfortable having food left outside your door, indicate that in your special instructions. National Braille Press sells a whole book on food delivery services and how to use them. (Go to the National Braille Press website to find Dinner Delivered by Chris Grabowski and Kim Loftis. At this writing, National Braille Press has announced that this book, along with two others providing content relevant to the current health crisis, will be available for free download until April 30, 2020.
Precautions At Home
Even if cleaning has never been your sport, now is the time to practice it at home. Soap and water work wonders on all those surfaces touched by everyone – sinks, faucets, appliances, door handles, light switches, and thermostats, just to name a few. If there are children in your family get them involved in the keep-it-clean effort. Disinfecting wipes, if you have them, are great for many of these surfaces. Speaking of wipes, please don’t put any of them down your toilet – even the ones for babies that say they are flushable. They aren’t.
Getting Tested
You wash your hands incessantly. You wear gloves. You wipe down every conceivable surface you have touched and disinfect your white cane and then suddenly, you are running a temperature, sneezing, and feel like you can’t get out of bed.
Getting tested is no piece of cake for anyone, but again, this poses more challenges for people who are blind or low vision.
If you’re sick you don’t want to take the train or the bus to a medical facility. A Lyft or Uber driver probably won’t be crazy about taking you to a drive-through test site.
If you have a young and healthy family member or neighbor who can drive, you might ask that person to take you. Still, while young people are lower risk for developing the virus, they can share it.
Best solution would be to call your own primary care physician for advice. Call them before you are sick at all to ask how they are handling medical advice during this health crisis. I called my own primary care physician with that question, just to be prepared. I was immediately given his email address and mobile phone number with the assurance that he is open to handling medical concerns via email and facetime.
Remember that only those exhibiting distinct symptoms should even consider testing, so don’t seek it if you are not sick. And of course, we hope you won’t need it.
Finally, the nastiest, most germ-laden items in your universe might well be the device you are using to read these words. Keep following AccessWorld and the AFB website for more safety information, including tips on how to disinfect your keyboard, smartphone, tablet, and more. Wishing health and wellness to all.
Note: In addition to Dinner Delivered, mentioned above, National Braille Press is making two other books free for download in response to the COVID-19 crisis. Visit the National Braille Press website to find Getting Visual Assistance with an iPhone, by Judy Dixon, and Navigating Healthcare When All They Can See Is That You Can’t, by Deborah Kendrick. All three free books have been reviewed in previous issues of AccessWorld.
This article is made possible in part by generous funding from the James H. and Alice Teubert Charitable Trust, Huntington, West Virginia.
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