Hello! I have been a doctor for 21 years. My name is Georgy Olegovich Sapego. In this article, I will tell you about how and why to use a medical mask during the COVID-19 epidemic.
The SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus, which causes the disease COVID-19, can be transmitted through the air with droplets. A medical mask stops droplets from moving through the air and prevents the virus from infecting people.
If the mask is on the patient, then he cannot spray the virus with a cough, sneeze or when talking.
If the mask is on a healthy person, then it delays the virus that arrives from the patient with drops of saliva, sputum and snot.
Not everyone needs to wear masks. Don't create a shortage of masks! Masks will still come in handy when someone really gets sick.
The most effective ways to protect yourself from the virus are:
- wash your hands often;
- sneeze and cough into a rag or sleeve;
- keep at least 1 meter away from anyone who coughs or sneezes.
Remember: masks are needed only where a sick person is.
Wear a mask if you cough or sneeze.
If you are sick and you are not wearing a mask, then all people who are in the same room with you should be wearing masks.
If you are not sick, then you only need to wear a mask when caring for a sick person.
A healthy person does not need to wear a mask in public.
Masks work only when we wash our hands properly or treat them with an antiseptic. If you do not wash your hands and use the mask incorrectly, then it will not save you.
How to use the mask correctly
Before using the mask, wash your hands properly or treat them with an alcohol-based antiseptic.
Examine and check the mask for tears and holes.
Determine which side of the mask should be on the outside. This is the colored side.
Determine which side of the mask should be on top. There is a metal strip.
Place the mask on your face and wear the elastic bands of the mask over your ears or tie the mask on the back of your head.
The mask should cover your nose, mouth, and chin. Be sure to put the mask under your chin.
Find a metal strip on the mask, press it against the bridge of your nose and model this strip to the shape of your nose.
Make sure there are no gaps between the mask and your face. Wrap your arms around the mask and breathe. This is how you find leaks.
After that, you must not touch the outside of the mask. The mask works like a vacuum cleaner and there will be viruses on its surface. If you touch the outside of the mask, be sure to wash your hands or treat them with an alcohol-based antiseptic.
If the mask becomes wet during use, replace it with a dry one.
To take off the mask, grasp the elastic bands or drawstrings without touching the outside, pull off the mask and place it in a closable dustbin or bag.
The mask used is a bomb stuffed with viruses, so after removing the mask, be sure to wash your hands or treat them with a sanitizer.
Never put on a reused mask.
What usually doesn't reach
If you are healthy and out of the house, then you do not need a mask.
If someone is sick at your home, then you need to move him to a separate room.
If the patient is in the same room with you, then some of you need to put on a mask to interrupt the transmission of the virus. If the patient has shortness of breath, then he will not always be able to wear a mask. Therefore, you will need to put on a mask every time you enter his room.
Today I read that like you need to wear a mask if you go to the patient so as not to infect him with another infection. This is stupidity. We are always talking about the coronavirus, and not about another infection. The mask interrupts the transmission path and it is not so important who it is worn on.
The mask is considered an acceptable form of protection, even for healthcare workers who lack respirators.
And again - there can be only one medical mask between a sick and a healthy person. It can be either on the sick or on the healthy.
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