Last updated on June 3, 2020
Masks are a necessary part of personal protective equipment (PPE). They are required for health-care professionals. Masks are also necessary in a household where an individual is sick with Covid-19. At least the caregiver or the infected person should use a mask.
Outside of the hospital, and in particular in the open air, the risk of breathing in enough droplets is significantly reduced at a distance of two meters (six feet) from the other person, especially if the person is not sneezing or coughing. This, however, does not mean that masks won’t be able to provide additional protection.
Facemasks are now recommended, particularly inside. However, if people rush to buy the kind absolutely required at hospitals and some people hoard them, then there might not be enough available for health-care workers. The CDC now recommends that people that are not care givers wear face masks, but not the kind needed in hospitals. Masks are required now by everyone leaving their home in many countries and cities, but they can be cloth masks that are easy to make. The CDC has posted instructions on how to make cloth face masks at home.
Threader: What’s the evidence for mask wearing? Here is a list of SEVENTY papers…
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A good article from Scientific American:
How to Use Masks during the Coronavirus Pandemic (June 2, 2020)
Putting on and removing masks in a health-care setting:
(The blue or “bluer” side of the mask faces outward.)
WebMD: Face Masks at Home Reduce COVID-19 Risk, Study Says (May 28, 2020)
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BBC: Coronavirus: How to wear a face covering? (May 13, 2020)
BBC: Coronavirus: Should the public wear face masks? (April 30, 2020)
DW: How to wear a face mask properly (April 24, 2020)
STAT: Simply speaking could transmit coronavirus, new study suggests (April 15, 2020)
NYT: Why Telling People They Don’t Need Masks Backfired (Opinion) (March 17, 2020)