Jack Lipton, Ph.D.:
You may be able to make fun of your own vigilance — for example, “I’m a total germaphobe, and I’m not going to give it up!”
You may be able to appeal to their business sense. “We really don’t want to get a reputation for being less careful.”
You may be able to appeal to their desire to get the economy in shape. “Once people start seeing that businesses are being cautious and taking preventative measures, they’ll be more likely to start shopping again.”
You could point to the many videos and photos people are posting online. “I really don’t want to be caught in someone’s picture or video working without a mask.”
Consider what your colleagues value, and use that as your starting point.
Alison Bernstein, Ph.D.:
“Uncle Sam wants YOU to wear a mask.” This is in jest, but what is missing from the conversation is an attempt to instill a sense of civic duty and responsibility to your community to keep each other safe. This pandemic is a clear case where individual action is insufficient to address the problem. The only way to protect myself is to protect you and the only way for you to protect yourself is to protect me.
The reason this is the case goes back to the R value. If the virus can’t get from one host to the next, we stop it in its tracks and R goes down. The minute we stop being vigilant, the virus finds new hosts and R goes back up. This is what is currently happening to the R value in Michigan. Given that people can be infected and infect others without realizing it because they feel ok, the virus will continue to lurk in our population unless we all wear masks, wash hands often and practice physical distancing.
We are doing as well as we are in Michigan because of the measures we have taken, but if we relax those measures without wearing masks, washing hands often and practicing physical distancing, it will all be for nothing.
The pandemic is not over. In many states, cases are starting to go up, are still going up, or are going back up. Even in NY and MI which have flattened the curve, the curve will go back up if we are not mindful and vigilant in our mask wearing, hygiene and distancing as we open things back up. Even when curves are flattened, the virus will still be with us. A flattened curve does not mean we have eradicated the virus. To keep the curve flat, we must remain diligent.