They should be encouraged to put on a new face mask after a reasonable period of respite time. The technical storage or access is necessary for the legitimate purpose of storing preferences that are not requested by the subscriber or user. . Video, The secret mine that hid the Nazis' stolen treasure, New record as one in 11 Scots had Covid last week, Covid pressure on hospitals 'as serious as it gets', waiting times at accident and emergency rooms hitting a record high on Tuesday, The UK's last remaining Covid restrictions, MasterChef Australia host Jock Zonfrillo dies, Adidas sued by investors over Kanye West deal, Suspected IS chief killed in Syria, Turkey says, UK chip giant Arm files for blockbuster share sale, Pope urges Hungarians to 'open doors' to migrants, US bank makes last ditch bid to find rescuer. That said, Covid, and I think we know and understand it, represented a significant shock to the system and its ongoing impact together with associated backlogs, coupled with extraordinary levels of other illnesses this winter, is creating pressure that is truly unprecedented.. "So we should be acting as a community so everyone can go out in public and everybody can be safe.". While she recognised that most of the capacity problems stem from the SNPs failure to tackle delayed discharge, she refuses to drop her reckless plans for a wasteful, centralised National Care Service. Those eligible for an exemption card can obtain the card by visitingwww.exempt.scotor via the free helpline at 0800 121 6240. Read about our approach to external linking. NHS Scotland has approved the transparent mask for use by both healthcare staff and patients. Do you still have to wear a face mask in Scotland? New rule change Mask wearing has been part of a package of infection control measures employed to reduce COVID-19 in hospitals throughout the pandemic. You may want to read Twitters cookie policy, external and privacy policy, external before accepting. Your cookie preferences have been saved. Prof Jason Leitch says he is still worried about the "overwhelmed nature" of the health service. It is recognised that it will be impractical for individuals to wear face mask at all times and these will have to be removed for reasons such as eating, drinking, sleeping or showering. . But the study has several limitations, including that it was an observational study so can't prove causation, staff adherence to the mask-wearing policy was not assessed and we were unable to determine staff infection rates. "If I choose not to wear a mask, I make it dangerous for somebody who's vulnerable and I take their choice away," he said. Masks and Face Coverings Middlesex-London Health Unit The secret mine that hid the Nazis' stolen treasure. That will benefit patients, I think its important to note that first and foremost, but it will also free up much-needed capacity in hospitals.. This article has been reviewed according to ScienceX's Despite the use of face coverings no longer being a legal requirement, she strongly recommended that people "continue wearing face coverings in indoor settings where possible, and particularly when significant numbers of people are present". But I don't want to quibble about that. What difference will lifting face mask laws make? Hopefully the masks will be another wee boost for us," she said. Here are the current rules around face masks for people in Scotland. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. European Society of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases. Click here to sign in with It is strongly recommended that you wear a FRSM (or your own face covering) when moving around (i.e. For patients with symptoms, the new guidelines suggest 10 days of isolation from the date of symptom onset. First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said anyone. not seated at your desk). The legal requirement to wear face coverings in many indoor settings in Scotland will end next Monday. *clinicians/community healthcare managers should apply judgement and consider if other IPC measures, such as hand hygiene, respiratory etiquette and ventilation are sufficient depending on the patient/ resident/ clients condition and the care pathway. First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said a fortnight ago that she expected the face covering rules to be lifted on Easter Monday. April 28, 2023 | 10:26 AM. How well have Scotland and the UK coped with Covid? To find out more, researchers from St George's Hospital in south-west London analyzed routinely collected infection control data over a 40-week period between December 4, 2021 (the first week when the omicron variant became dominant) and September 10, 2022 (when universal COVID-19 screening on admission by PCR stopped) to examine hospital-acquired SARS-CoV-2 infections in relation to changes in mask-wearing policies over time. To keep our patients and staff safe, NHS Western Isles is requiring all staff, visitors and those attending healthcare appointments at our hospitals and other premises to wear a clinical face mask on entry to the premises.