[AD] Self Isolation Helps Keep Wales Safe/ Diogelu Cymru

Over the last few months, I have been involved with the Welsh Government’s Keep Wales Safe campaign. The purpose of the campaign is to inspire all of us in Wales to do our bit, follow the guidelines and keep ourselves, our family and friends safe, as well as the wider community.

The coronavirus pandemic has now been a part of everybody’s lives for the last 15 months. There is no doubt it has changed our lives dramatically. It has certainly changed mine. The one, all-consuming change it has made to me personally is that I always ensure I follow the Government guidelines. By doing so I am helping stem the transmission of this awful virus which has sadly taken so many lives and affected so many families across Wales. If we hadn’t followed the guidelines this could have been so much worse than it already has been.

The importance of following the guidelines cannot be stressed enough. Even though the transmission and deaths of coronavirus has slowed down over recent months, this doesn’t mean that the guidelines are any less relevant. It’s still very important to follow them so that we can all benefit in the long run and keep Covid-19 under control. This means we should still be wearing our masks as required and washing our hands to keep the virus at bay as well as following all the other guidelines.

The Covid-19 virus is mutating all the time and new variants are developing all the time such as the delta variant which is highly transmissible. This highlights why it’s still so important to follow all of the guidelines.

Wales has been very successful at rolling out the vaccination programme, but this is where people have become complacent and taken their eye off the ball when it comes to Covid-19. Yes, the vaccination programme means less people are being admitted to hospital which of course is great. In addition, there are far fewer deaths, but it’s not going to solve the problem on its own. As a society we need to take responsibility for ourselves and others. 

It’s important to remember the symptoms of coronavirus are: a new and continuous cough, a high temperature and a loss or change to your sense of taste or smell. If you suffer from any of the above, then it’s vital that you self-isolate immediately and get tested for Covid-19. It is so important to self-isolate to reduce the chance of you passing it to anybody else as this is what helps break the transmission of coronavirus. 

Self-isolation is not always easy, but it’s only for a short time and by self-isolating you are helping to Keep Wales Safe.

There is support available if you have to self-isolate. Self-isolation means you mustn’t leave the house for 10 days. Self-isolation applies to adults and children of all ages, even if you have been vaccinated.

The Welsh Government offer financial support for people who cannot work from home and suffer a loss of earnings as a result of having to self-isolate. You could get £500 to help with any loss of wages. It’s possible you may have had to self-isolate before and applied for this support and you may have been unsuccessful. The Welsh Government has changed the eligibility criteria for this scheme so if you were unsuccessful last time, it does not necessarily mean that you will be unsuccessful in the future if you were asked to self-isolate again. If you want to learn more about the Welsh Government’s self-isolation support scheme, just click here.

The restrictions which have been in place over the last 15 months are beginning to ease. There is an element of normality is returning to our lives, but Covid-19 is a worldwide pandemic and new variants of coronavirus are being discovered. This is why it is so important to keep following the guidelines so that we keep transmission low, and the Welsh Government can continue easing restrictions.

Let’s Keep Wales Safe together as a nation.

#keepwalessafe/ #DiogeluCymru