Touch in times of COVID‐19: Touch hunger hurts

Abstract

<p>The novel coronavirus, COVID-19, was first reported in Wuhan, China; in late 2019 and in March 2020, the World Health Organization declared the outbreak a pandemic (World Health Organization, 2020). What quickly became clear is that COVID-19 spreads rapidly between people who are in close contact (Nussbaumer-Streit et al., 2020) and so, in efforts to stem the tide of infection, public health messages about the importance of maintaining physical distance were consistent and clear. Initial government advice to vulnerable populations was to self-isolate and practise social distancing (Extance, 2020). Social distancing can and has involved the closure of business', offices and schools, and restrictions around gatherings of people (Wilder-Smith & Freedman, 2020) alongside measures such as no handshaking, no hugging and instruction to stay 1.5 m or two arms lengths apart (Roser, Ritchie, Ortiz-Ospina, & Hasell, 2020). In this editorial, we discuss the wider implications of social distancing implications within the context of the COVID-19 worldwide pandemic and, in particular, the implications on human touch.</p>