This article was written for disease quarantine and decontamination, but some of it applies. I know I have an article on chemical and war gas decontamination, but I cannot find it at the moment and I am out of time on the internet for the moment. I will get it posted up as soon as I can.
How to quarantine/isolate those that might be contagious
I will not be going into long-term self-quarantine in this article. Standard security precautions are the rule, and taking care of basic human needs for two weeks to a year or more are a subject in and of themselves. This article is just as the title states. How to quarantine and isolate anyone that could be contagious for the incubation time of the suspected illness.
If it is a simple illness, but you still do not want it to spread, basic sanitation applies, plus normal sick room procedures such as masks, gloves, goggles, and full apron. Everything sanitized regularly with hot soapy water and a good disinfectant.
If it is something that is more dangerous, that could turn into an epidemic, much stricter measures must be taken. The first step is to set a location for the person or people. While individual isolation is best, that is almost impossible for home situations. Better to make a single effective isolation room than attempt to create several less effective ones.
First, decide on the room. As much as it might grate, the master bedroom is probably the best choice in most houses. It is usually one of the largest bedrooms, and with an attached bathroom, which makes it easy to keep the possible contagion in one area.
Move everything out of the rooms that is movable and not needed. Take out that big old king size bed. Chances are, the bathroom walls are washable. That is good. If the bedroom walls are, so much the better. But if not, then line the room with sheet plastic, using Gorilla tape or better to secure the plastic in place. Overlap seams at least two inches. You might have to use narrower strips for the ceiling, so it does not sag too much. For this application, since you are keeping things in, rather than out, tape flaps of plastic over switches and receptacles as you may need to use them. Place a piece of plywood in one of the windows large enough to accept some dryer vent ducting.
In the bathroom, if it does not need full enclosure, cover up the switches and outlets anyway, and cover the vents. Use full overlapping plastic sheets at the entrance door. It is best to line the edges with magnetic tape to keep them closed, if possible, but as long as they fit well and lay tightly when closed, it will work.
Lay plastic tarps down on the floor over the plastic to take the brunt of the abuse. They will be destroyed later so cheap ones are okay. Tape them down firmly so there is solid footing.
Once the room is lined, but before the doors are hung, move in some cots or bunks. Add some easy to sanitize hard surface chairs and a table with a hard surface. Have a small table for each cot/bunk that can be disinfected to hold anything needed for that person. Add a chemical toilet to the bathroom, in case the power and/or water go off and the regular toilet quits working.
Bring in something to keep peoples morale up. Something to do. Lots to do. It is going to get very boring if they do not get sick.
With the vents closed off, and the doors and windows kept closed, the room is going to need its own ventilation system. As long as the power is on, a good shop vac with HEPA filter can be used to blow air out of the room through the window board. (A sound barrier will be needed to reduce the sound levels.)A large HEPA filter over another hole in the window board will allow air to come into the room. If humidity still gets too high, then a standalone dehumidifier can be operated. Even a standalone air conditioner can be operated.
If the power goes out, things get tougher. Two 24”x24” HEPA filters built into separate boxes can be placed at the window board and a 12 volt DC fan run to blow air out one and let the air come in the other. A 12v bucket swamp cooler or air conditioner will keep the room cooler, but humidity could become a problem if the air is not circulated in and out enough.
That is the isolation room. But that is not enough in serious cases. A decontamination area should be constructed the same way as the room, in the hallway that the room opens into. Basically the width of the hallway, and a bit longer than that width. This is where decontamination will take place going into the isolation room as well as coming out. You will need a kiddie pool small enough to fit into this space, plus a battery and 12v bilge pump with hose, and a bucket to handle the decontamination fluids.
If time, space, and material allow, another closed room can be created as a changing room to change clothes or add/remove items before and after decontamination.
Once the room(s) are set up and the cots/bunks are in place, cover the mattresses with plastic and tape it in place. The same with the pillows. Then add the bedding. It should be plain white cotton that can be boiled and/or bleached heavily. Sheets and blankets both. If you cannot bleach it without it coming apart it is not suitable for continued use. Better yet is disposable bedding. In the case of ebola and some other highly infectious and extremely deadly organisms, the process of putting reusable bedding through a cleaning process in a home can just spread the contamination around.
Pretty much everything else should be disposable, preferably paper or plastic. Trying to disinfect reusable items is too much work and takes up too many resources, as well as risks spreading the disease.
Use some common sense when it comes to working with those in isolation. Wear the goggles, face mask, gloves, and coverall religiously. Decontaminate as if you and your family’s lives depend on it, because they do. Treat those that get sick with compassion. If you have the means to help them get well, use it. If not, make them comfortable.
In a home setting dealing with multiple isolation cases can be very difficult. The last thing you want is to expose someone that might or might not have an infection to someone else that might. And with a single isolation room, that must also be a treatment room, this is even more critical. So, if there is more than one person to be isolated, but do not yet have symptoms, those people should wear basic PPE to avoid getting an infection from someone else also in the same isolation/quarantine area.
Be ready to burn or otherwise safely dispose of all the contaminated trash.
Now, if the contagion is wide spread, and you decide to isolate the whole household, you will need to be prepared for up to at least a 90 day isolation period. This should be long enough for the disease to spread through the area and then essentially run out of hosts to infect and die off (in that area).
So you will need a 90 day supply of everything. And I mean everything. From food to water to sanitation to heating fuel. All kept within a protected area that cannot be contaminated from the outside.
About the only other option is to have one or more reliable, trustworthy contact persons that remain outside the isolated household, off the property. Also needed is an enclosed exchange point at a window or door that can be decontaminated easily. Essentially a mini isolation room with air lock hatches or doors on each side, where the outside person can bring in or take out items necessary to maintain the isolation inside the home.
The person will need to be versed in using PPE, isolation techniques, and decontamination techniques. They will need the means to communication with those inside the structure, and have the means to obtain items needed by the household, and to dispose of items that need to be removed from the household.
Besides just a transfer agent, the person can also be a good source of information, and in a worst-case scenario, can help provide for the defense of the home from outside, giving one a much better chance to survive an attack on the home.
Just remember, that bringing anything into the house after the contagion begins to spread, is a huge risk. Decontamination of everything brought in must be effective to the nth degree, or risk bringing the contagion inside.
If the worst happens, and someone dies, get them into a body bag and removed to a suitable storage point that is secure, as cool as possible, and out of sight.
Do not count on any assistance from anyone else, even the government. If it is a pandemic, they are going to be busy, if even still working.
Isolation room equipment and materials:
Sheet plastic
Plastic tarps
Gorilla tape
24" x 24" HEPA filters
12v fan w/pre charged deep cycle batteries
12v bucket swamp cooler or A/C
Dehumidifier
Chemical toilet w/chemical, TP, and buckets for storage of waste (if no bathroom)
Washing station w/sink, collection bucket, and cleaner (if not bathroom)
Water purifier (not filter) (if there is sickness, they are going to need lots of pure water)
Folding cots
All cotton white bedding and lots of it
Easy to decontaminate chairs and tables
Insect control materials (flies, gnats, mosquitos, other bugs can carry infectious body fluids)
Patient care items:
Hand sanitizer
Disinfectant soap
Disposable patient gowns
Warm socks
Individual patient signal devices (bell, wireless intercom, FRS radio, laptop w/Skype)
Disposable thermometers or non-contact electronic thermometer
Disposable graduated medication dispensing cups and syringes
Individual boxes of Kleenex
Individual patient clipboard with medical information paperwork and pen
Vomit pails, with sealable bags
Fever reduction materials
Trash cans & bags to hold contaminated clothing and bedding
Easy prep, easy to eat shelf stable foods (Heavy on soups, ice cream, Jello, yogurt)
Disposable dishes and flatware
Oral rehydration powder or liquid (if there is sickness, they will likely become dehydrated)
Vitamin C (Emergen-C packets or similar)(Vitamin C always helps)
Multivitamins (With a limited diet, they are going to need the vitamins)
Homeopathic treatments
Some type of entertainment and boredom reducing materials
Care giver PPE:
P100 masks (though there are N-95 masks that will work, be safer and use the P-100s)
Exam gloves
Nitrile gloves
Safety glasses/goggles
Full face shield (Mostly to keep from touching your face)
Tychem or similar booted/hooded coveralls
Disposable plastic aprons
Rubber boots
Please remember that these items can contaminate other items if they themselves pick up the contagion. So, while you may be protected, you can easily spread the contagion by handling other things after your PPE has been exposed. Of course decontamination procedures mitigates most of this outside the quarantine/isolation room. But if one has disinfected the bathroom, then does something with an infected quarantined person, and then touches on of those cleaned surfaces, that surface could now be contaminated again. So be aware that your PPE is a risk to other people.
And, other than a full encapsulated suit, touching your face, especially the eyes, nose, and mouth, with gloved hands, you can contaminate yourself accidently. So make it a point to never touch any part of your body with your gloved hands. One of the best ways to do this is to wear a full face shield over the safety goggles. This way, it takes a specific effort to touch your face, since the shield has to be lifted.
Disinfecting/decontamination materials:
Disinfecting cleaner (bleach, Hibiclens, alcohol)
Cleaning cloths that can be bleached, or heavy duty disposable paper towels
Disposable heavy duty cleaning gloves
Trash cans & bags to hold general trash
Bleach
Scrub brush
Garden sprayer (to spray down when decontaminating)
Kiddie pool as decontamination sump
12 volt bilge pump &battery, with buckets with lids for contaminated water
Death handling equipment and supplies:
Body bags
Death record paperwork
Additional medical equipment list:
Part # 10: Convalescent & invalid care equipment & supplies
Privacy screen
Gowns
Incontinent briefs
Enema/douche bags
Bed pans
Bed urinals
Vomit pails
Rubber/plastic bed sheeting
Bed rails
Traction rack w/weights, cables & attachment harnesses
IV support stands
Patient bed restraints
Walking canes
Walkers
Crutches
Wheelchairs
Rubbing alcohol
Vinegar
Petroleum jelly
Skin lotion
Sponge bath pan, wash cloth & towels
Tray w/water pitcher & glass
Hot water bottles
Non-electric heating pads (sand filled leather/cloth bags)
Vaporizer tea kettle w/breathing hood/mask/tent
Ice bags
Freezable cold packs
Nebulizer
O2 concentrator
Oxygen tank & mask
Alarm clock
Medication reminder/dispenser container
Part # 11: Quarantine, infectious diseases & Hazmat kit
Surgical gloves
Surgical masks
Safety glasses/goggles
Rubber gloves
Gas mask
Rubber boots
Tychem/hazmat coveralls w/attached hood & booties
Providone Iodine prep pads
Hibiclens Antiseptic surgical scrub (liquid)
Commercial Disinfectant
Acid & Alkali neutralizing chemicals
Broom
Dustpan
Whisk broom
Dusting brush (soft bristle paint brush)
Pans & cleaning sponges
Buckets & scrub brushes
Heavy duty garbage bags
Shovel
Warning/Marking sign kit
Sign/placard material
Indelible marker
Heavy duty double stick tape
Staple gun w/staples
Hammer/hatchet w/nails
Wooden stakes
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