Fianna Fáil Health spokesperson Stephen Donnelly has called for an immediate review by government of its current position regarding hospital staff wearing masks. To date the advice has been that only when clinicians are interacting directly with a patient who has COVID-19 should masks be worn.
However, there has been growing concern among clinicians that they should be wearing masks all the time. This is particularly in light of the high numbers of clinicians testing positive for COVID-19, the new evidence that half of transmissions are from non-symptomatic people, and the huge impact on staffing that a positive test for a clinician has, as most of their team then have to immediately self-isolate for two weeks.
“While I know there are differences of opinion in relation to the effectiveness of masks, it seems to me that for safety’s sake the government’s current position on this should be given an urgent review. Particularly now that PPE supplies are landing in Ireland, and the masks needed to implement this policy should now be in the hospitals”, said Deputy Donnelly.
“That is now the situation in St James’s Hospital in Dublin where masks are recommended for all patient encounters and for any staff meeting where social distancing cannot be maintained.
“The hospital specifically says that this is for ‘all encounters where COVID is neither suspected or proven.’
“The message to the country at large during the current restrictions is to behave as if you have COVID-19. Clinicians are saying that in a hospital environment this must mean all staff, including those in administrative roles, wearing a mask.”