Coronavirus: why global health chiefs are calling for 'social distancing' term to be dropped

The World Health Organisation says the term implies a complete disconnect with others, and relationships remain key to people’s mental well-being

Labourers wear protective face masks as they wait in line to get temperature checked before entering construction worksite, following the outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), in Ahmadi, Kuwait. Reuters

A street cat sits on a table sealed off from customers at Istanbul's famous Pierre Loti cafe in Istanbul, Turkey. Getty Images

An Afghan man sells Masala dishes as he waits for customers despite a lockdown in Kabul, Afghanistan. EPA

A man works on the construction site of a new 100-bed hospital in Herat province, Afghanistan. Reuters

Trees are pictured along an empty road, during a countrywide lockdown in Beirut, Lebanon. Reuters

A pharmacist, wearing a face mask and gloves as a preventive measure against Covid-19, talks to a customer from behind a nylon curtain put up at the front of the pharmacy in Damascus, Syria. EPA

Palestinian security forces arrest a Palestinian man who has not adhered to the house quarantine for 14 days, and takes him to a detention centre in the city of Hebron in the West Bank. EPA

A Palestinian girl sits on the window of a multi-storey building in the West Bank city of Nablus. EPA

Palestinian security forces arrest a shop owner who did not abide by the lockdown, and take him to a prison in the West Bank city of Hebron. EPA

Turkish police officers set up a control point at an exit of Istanbul, Turkey. EPA

A Turkish police officer checks the temperature of passengers in a bus which was not following the rules at an exit in Istanbul, Turkey. EPA

View of a nearly-empty street in the northern Gaza Strip. EPA

A young Egyptian woman is jogging near the compound of the military academy in Cairo, Egypt. EPA

A life-sized dummy dressed in a safety gear and a protective mask is seen on a construction worksite, following the outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), in Ahmadi, Kuwait. Reuters

The World Health Organisation is dropping its use of the term social distancing to encourage people to stay connected during the coronavirus outbreak.

Officials are instead adopting the phrase "physical distance" to help curb the spread of the pandemic without cutting much-needed social ties.

They believe it more accurately frames the need to maintain a distance from others to prevent infection, without discouraging people from maintaining vital social interactions - even if via a video phone call or phone message - at a time when support networks are crucial for so many.

“We are changing to say ‘physical distance’ and that’s on purpose because we want people to remain connected,” said Dr Maria Kerkhove, a WHO epidemiologist.

“So find ways to do that, find ways through the Internet and through different social media to remain connected because your mental health going through this (pandemic) is just as important as your physical health.”

Experts say people can still remain connected either online through social media, over the phone, or even by talking to each other at a safe distance in checkout lines, hence the use of the new term.

Psychologists have warned that the gloomy global situation could be harmful to people's mental health.

"Anxiety can be a helpful and protective emotion, and is a response to threat or danger – it can also become counterproductive and damaging if it is excessive or prolonged," said Tanya Dharamshi, clinical director and counselling psychologist at Priory Wellbeing Centre in Dubai, in a recent interview with The National.

“The current coronavirus pandemic will be a significant cause of concern for many people, but for those who suffer from acute anxiety, it could exacerbate their condition so it becomes more debilitating.”

Jamil Zaki, an associate professor of psychology at Stanford University, in the United States, backed the move away from the use of the phrase social distancing.

Writing on the university's website, he said the terminology went against the basic human need to join together in times of crisis.

"Social distancing is vital to slowing the spread of Covid-19, but it also pushes against human beings’ fundamental need for connection with one another," he wrote.

"Especially during difficult times, people feel an urge to commiserate, to comfort and be comforted by each other. Experiments show that the support of loved ones softens our response to stress."

The WHO has issued its own set of guidelines and advice for staying mentally well as governments around the world battle to contain the largest public health threat in a generation.

The global body suggested that offering to help vulnerable people can have a positive effect on reducing stress, as can honouring health workers fighting the pandemic on the front line in hospitals, clinics and airports.

A shining example of the latter point came when residents across the world gathered on balconies and opened windows last week to cheer joyfully for health workers leading efforts to tackle the disease.

In the UAE, people shopping in supermarkets or pharmacies are urged to stay at least 1.5m apart to avoid becoming infected by anyone who could be carrying the virus unknowingly.

All retail outlets that remain open have been ordered to place signs on the floor at the checkouts and in reception areas showing people how close they can stand to each other.