Goodbye, handshake. Hello, elbow bump? Greetings to avoid during the coronavirus outbreak

By Adrianna Rodriguez, USA TODAY

As coronavirus spreads in the United States, killing at least six and infecting more than 100 as of early Wednesday, people are beginning to get more creative with their social interactions as they try their best to avoid contact.

Surgeon General Jerome Adams (right) elbow bump with Connecticut  Governor Led Lamont  as they meet in Rocky Hill Conn. Jessica Hill, AP

Institutions are already starting to implement best practices in the West Coast. The Roman Catholic Diocese of San Bernardino announced that parishes have the option “to implement liturgical restrictions that are allowed during the annual flu season,” according to a letter from the Office of the Vicar General sent to the Los Angeles Times.

Global leaders also are taking precautions. German chancellor Angela Merkel was waved away by Interior Minister Horst Seehofer after she extended her hand for a greeting during a meeting Monday.

Handshakes

Handshakes are popular among co-workers, classmates and acquaintances inside a professional setting, but health experts warn that shaking hands is a prime way to spread the coronavirus.

In Germany, where children are taught to shake hands with adults and the firmness of the grip can be seen as correlating to personality strength, health experts and doctors are trying to persuade people to stop.

At Virchow hospital in Berlin, doctors not only stopped shaking hands with their patients – even noncontagious ones – but are encouraging them to follow the example as cases in Germany exceeded 200. 

Friendly kissing

In other countries, health officials are advising the public to avoid friendly kissing, or a quick peck on either one or both cheeks as a way to say hello. 

The Italian government’s special commissioner for coronavirus, Angelo Borrelli, has suggested that Italians’ demonstrative nature could be contributing to the virus’ spread. More than 2,000 people have tested positive and 79 have died, almost all of them in the country’s north.

Read more: Goodbye, handshake. Hello, elbow bump

Source: USA Today

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