In our recent webinar, we explored all things COVID-19 and its impact on unified communications and collaboration (UCC).
T1V CEO Mike Feldman moderated a panel discussion, led by one of the world’s leading physicians, Dr. David B. Agus of the Ellison Institute of USC.
In the UCC based AV industry, much of the technology solutions are powered by the hardware tools we use to visually collaborate with each other, whether that’s for meetings, brainstorming sessions, strategic planning, data visualization and more…
Even though T1V collaboration software can be used on a variety of solutions - whether that’s physical touchscreens, non-touch displays, or completely virtually in the Cloud - often, the preferred hardware solution for collaboration boards in a meeting room or home office is a touchscreen.
But with the shock of the global pandemic, T1V, AV industry professionals,and AV users began asking:
Is it safe to touch a touchscreen?
According to Dr. Agus’ medical expertise, the COVID-19 virus is “transmitted almost exclusively through droplets” as opposed to transmission from touching surfaces.
This means that in order to contract Coronavirus, you must inhale droplets from a person who has the infection, which occurs usually from the infected person breathing, coughing, or sneezing - which expels droplets from the body.
Due to this research, Dr. Agus explains that “touchscreens are fine” and offered solutions to ensure your safety and the safety of the touchscreen users around you when it comes to COVID-19.
Don’t use communal touchscreens when you’re sick.
Because the virus spreads through droplets, if you are sick and using a meeting room touchscreen, for example, there is a possibility that you could infect the other meeting participants if you cough or sneeze. With this being said, it is important to protect those around you by not interacting with the touchscreen display when you are already ill.
Properly clean the touchscreen prior to use.
Cleanliness is key when using a touchscreen now that the COVID-19 global pandemic exists. It is easy to protect your team against Coronavirus when using a touchscreen by using simple cleaning solutions that eliminate germs and disinfect your display. Many cleaning solutions are chemical-free and disinfect screens without damage.
The perk of cleaning touchscreen technology as opposed to technology with a lot of crevices, like ATMS for instance - is that you can ensure a flat screen is completely clean, without certain spots that are difficult to reach with germs remaining. Once you wipe down a touchscreen, you can be confident that it is safe to touch.
Wash your hands before using a touchscreen.
Dr. Agus reminded us that even though we should clean a touchscreen before using it - if we also wash our hands prior to participating in a collaborative meeting with a touchscreen, it would have the same effect.
Use gloves with touchscreens when appropriate.
Try to find touch screens that allow the use of gloves and work just as well as they would with a bare hand. So in an environment where gloves are required, like in medical or scientific labs, this is a good option to stop the spread of COVID-19.
Choose to use a stylus on a touchscreen.
Using a stylus with a touchscreen display is safe and effective. Whether you have an individual stylus you use for annotation, or to write Notes or Sketches on ThinkHub interactive meeting software, the stylus is a tool to use communal touchscreen technology in a more personalized way.
We’ve learned that 3D, physical interaction is most natural to the human brain and helps with information retention, among other things. It’s a relief to know that we can continue to use the hardware tool we’ve come to love in the collaboration space: the touchscreen.
Watch the full webinar with Dr. Agus and the UCC Industry Expert Panel here.