With the high numbers of patients presenting at our hospitals with contagious respiratory conditions – including flu and COVID-19 – we have introduced the routine wearing of masks for some patients and staff. This is in line with national clinical guidance, and is being done to reduce the risk of onward transmission of these viruses to protect our staff and patients.
We are asking our patients, visitors and staff to observe the following precautions. We appreciate that not everyone is able to wear a mask, but we ask everyone to do so if they can to protect themselves and others.
- Facemasks should be worn by staff, patients and visitors in our gateway areas (such as our emergency department and assessment units) where we have large numbers of unwell patients who are untested for respiratory viruses
- Facemasks should be worn by staff, patients and visitors in areas where we have patients with a confirmed respiratory virus – please ask a member of staff if you are unsure if this applies to where you are
- Patients who display respiratory symptoms will be asked to wear facemasks if they can
- Visitors are asked not to visit the hospital if they have respiratory symptoms if they are able to postpone their visit
We currently have a good supply of facemasks at the trust, which are being replenished regularly. If the area you are in does not have any immediately available, please let staff know.
You can also reduce the risk of catching, becoming seriously ill from and passing on flu by having your flu vaccination, washing your hands regularly and using hand gel. Keeping your distance from others when you can is also helpful.
Do masks work?
While wearing masks doesn’t entirely eliminate the risk that flu or other respiratory illnesses are passed on, they do reduce that risk. This is because many of these illnesses are spread in the ‘droplets’ of moisture which our body produces naturally, and which are projected when we cough or sneeze. Wearing a mask not only reduces the chance that we inhale these droplets from others when they’ve sneezed, but also means that if we are unwell ourselves, when we cough or sneeze the spread of the droplets we produce is reduced.
Droplet transmission also means that we can catch respiratory viruses if we have droplets – even microscopic droplets – on our fingers and then rub our nose, mouth or eyes. So please try to avoid touching your mask too often, dispose of it carefully when you have finished using it, and regularly wash your hands or use hand gel to keep your hands clean and virus-free.