With more than 1 million COVID-19 cases reported in the United States over the last seven days, staying home is the best means of protecting yourself this Thanksgiving. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) urges individuals to celebrate Thanksgiving at home with the people with whom they live.
Here are a few helpful ideas for ensuring these smaller gatherings remain safe and still feel special:
• The CDC issued guidelines for small holiday gatherings, along with helpful infographics: Everyone Can Make Thanksgiving Safer and Consider Other Thanksgiving Activities.
• MySouthernHealth posted a few helpful tips:
- Hold gatherings outside. If that's not possible, increase ventilation by opening windows and doors.
- Limit group size.
- Avoid close-contact gestures such as hugs or hand shakes.
- Don't serve buffet-style—ask everyone to bring their own food.
- As always, practice preventive measures such wearing masks, washing hands regularly and staying socially distant.
• In this new video from Vanderbilt Health, infectious disease experts Dr. Tom Talbot and Dr. William Schaffner talked with work/life relations expert Jim Kendall, LCSW, about how they were curtailing their traditional holiday plans to ensure the health of older and more vulnerable family members.
