What to Bring for a Hygienic Business Trip?
During the COVID-19 pandemic, business travelers should be extra careful and should observe proper hygiene and sanitation.
Microbes could be lurking anywhere, eyeing for another host. Air travel is relatively safe compared to other activities we do daily. But there is a possibility to catch the virus in crowded places on a business trip such as airports or any crowded public space along your journey.
Do not be too complacent. Prevent getting sick while travelling by staying hygienic and maximizing cleanliness. Be a virus-free, healthy traveler with the following helpful tips.
Pack up these 7 things inside your Purse, Hand luggage, or Backpack, to prevent infection and for hygienic travelling.
1. Hand Sanitizer 🧴
On a normal day, people won’t carry hand sanitizers with them all the time. But since the pandemic brought to us a somewhat, “new normal”, hand sanitizers are now bag essentials to protect oneself from catching the virus.
When you are always on the road, and there is no soap bar and clean running water available, a hand sanitizer is one of the easiest things to grab to keep your hands clean. Hand sanitizers have at least 60% alcohol content and can help to quickly remove dirt and microbes in your hands.
2. Antibacterial Disinfecting Wipes 👏
Antibacterial disinfecting wipes can be used in place of a hand sanitizer. But more than using it on your hands, it also goes a long way in disinfecting surfaces such as table tops, door knobs, seats on an airplane or a bus, and disinfecting your personal belongings such as mobile phones, chargers, ear plugs, laptop, and other gadgets that other people could possibly borrow from you.
3. Paper Mini Cups 🥤
In order to prevent infection, avoid using publicly available utensils at airport water fountains, fast food restaurants, cafeterias and food courts. You can’t be exactly sure that these utensils are indeed sanitized. Even if they were, you wouldn’t know if microbes are really dead. It’s better to bring your own drinking tumbler, or paper mini cups, whichever is more convenient and handier for your luggage space. Whenever you feel like taking a sip of water, you can easily slip it in and out of your bag.
4. Small Soap Bar 🧼
A handy soap bar might not always be available in public comfort rooms. Therefore, it’s better to just carry your own. One way to prevent getting sick while travelling is the frequent washing of hands. It’s a healthy habit and better than hand sanitizer!
When you travel, it’s unavoidable to completely not hold onto anything dirty. For instance, we don’t realize how frequently we touch our face, eyes, nose, hair, and mouth. These body parts can be entry points if we don’t keep our hands clean.
5. TSA Approved First Aid Kit 💊
A few months ago, people might make fun of you, if they see you carrying a first aid kit. But today, during a global pandemic, first aid kits have become very common amongst business travelers. Yes, some might still find it funny, but many business travelers simply say “better safe than sorry”. TSA stands for Transportation Security Administration.
TSA-approved first aid kits contain essentials not limited to:
· Gauze pads
· Bandage scissor
· Tape
· Different types of bandages
· Pain relievers
· Alcohol
· Plasters
· Lip balm
· Antibiotic ointment
· Hydrogen peroxide
· Prescribed medicines (as prescribed by doctors)
6. Face Mask 😷
Wearing of face masks is often mandatory. But even if not, they are still strongly recommended while travelling during a pandemic. It is one of the precautionary measures being implemented together with social distancing of about 6 to 8 feet.
There are many types of face masks available in the market. Find masks that are comfortable to wear for longer hours.
7. Disposable Gloves 🧤
Having disposable gloves is not an excuse to not wash your hands frequently. But it is a good bag essential just in case something unexpected comes up, and things get really messy. It’s also not a bad idea if you always get to touch things when you travel.
Disposable gloves are not meant to be worn for a very long period of time. Wearing disposable gloves should still adhere to what remains as the best hygienic practice, which is to wash your hands, as often as possible.
Business trips can’t be avoided especially if the people concerned need to run errands, meetings and transactions. No teleconferencing technology will ever replace the quality of face-to-face interactions. If there is a need for traveling, go for it and be mindful of the preventive measures, and the basic requirements to have a clean and safe trip. Just remember that prevention is better than cure.
Also note that certain countries have stricter PPE (Personal Protective Equipment) rules. For example, in the Philippines, it is currently mandatory to wear a face shield at public indoor places. For PPE guidelines you may sign up with SoldoutNight for free and reach out to customer support.
