As you prepare your holiday plans, deciding who will host dinner and what you’ll bring, consider these five tips to help you stay safe and avoid the uninvited guest — COVID-19 — at the dinner table or other festive events.

1. Host a small dinner party with only the people who live in your household or limit the guest list so you can keep a safe distance from one another. Remind those who have been invited to stay home if they have any symptoms, have been exposed to COVID-19 or have been in close contact with a person who has the virus in the last 14 days.

2. Limit the number of people handling food. Try to reduce the number of people in the kitchen and consider having one person serve all the food so that several people are not touching the utensils and serving dishes.

3. Consider hosting a virtual dinner and sharing recipes with friends and family. With this option, you can enjoy holiday festivities with friends and relatives out of the state or country.

4. Avoid shopping in crowded stores before and after the holiday. Instead, shop online and take advantage of free pick-up, delivery and shipping offers.

5. Watch tree-lighting events, parades, holiday performances on TV and movies from home. The key here is to avoid large gatherings with people from outside your household.

Staying home is the best way to protect yourself, your family, and others, but if you do decide to go out remember these precautions:

• Wear a mask or face covering around others. Be sure to keep a mask in your car in the event you forget. Encourage your friends and family to do the same.
• Keep a distance of at least 6 feet in public, while also wearing a mask or face covering.
• Continue to disinfect high-touch surfaces. Remember to wipe down your cell phone, doorknobs, remote controls and other frequently used objects.
• Wash your hands regularly throughout the day. Wash your hands for 20 seconds and use hand sanitizer if water and soap are unavailable.

To learn more about how we're keeping patients safe during the coronavirus pandemic, visit our COVID-19 Resource Center.