Visuals To Save A Life

 I'm sure something most people will write about on this topic is COVID-19. Rightfully so. Personally, this is the first time where I have taken such health precautions in my life. I remember growing up and having heard of the swine flu in 2009, as well as the Ebola virus. I was young both times I heard about them and because I did not feel them being real, I didn't take it that seriously. In all honestly, I would be lying if I said I took COVID-19 seriously as soon as I heard about it.

I was actually abroad when lockdown hit in most countries, and all I can say is many people we stranded and left to stay in their current locations regardless if it was home, domestic vacation, or somewhere abroad. I really came to be thankful that visual aids for health warnings existed. 

Soon signs like this one would become second nature, I mean it has become mandatory for any business, small or large to have these signs plastered all over. I didn't give much thought to signs and visual aids in the health industry until I was abroad. Its design is difficult because it has to be informative as well as accessible and understood by anyone, native or foreign. Something serious like health should be handled delicately and with a serious undertone because even if it may not apply to you, it can make a world of a difference to someone else. 

The (now) iconic "6ft" sign has become a social norm at this point. In a way, it's interesting that that wasn't something highlighted before. If we think about it, a place like NYC staying 6ft away from someone should have been a norm with just the possibility of getting a flue. 

I wanted to take this topic a step further. With the association of visuals, we can protect ourselves wherever we are. This is a sign in Chyrnoble Ukraine. Even if you don't know the language or the letters, you can recognize the radiation sign and have it be a warning to you. 

I have come to realize that this is an extraordinary time to be alive. I will get to tell my kids in the future about a time where I lived during a pandemic. We will also see health precautions change and possibly be taken more seriously in situations that the future holds. I think most can agree that visual communication is a universal language. Something I wrote about in my first blog, and this certainly connects to that. Health, as well as health risks, is something that should be taken seriously, and sitting here and thinking about how to make a sign or a visual that can portray the necessary message and have it be understood by absolutely everyone is astonishing to me.