Officials in US considering advising face masks to all people who go out in public– where will they get these items of apparel? I am in favor of this “innovation”. | Conrad Theodore Seitz
(photo/image courtesy of pixabay.com and Ri_Ya)
The need is apparent for all people, not just those who are ill, to wear facemasks in public. The only question is where they will come from. I have seen news accounts of home-made masks being produced by, dare I say it, entrepreneurs. These would appear to be ideal for the general public rather than medical providers, since they don’t look standard and may not be particularly effective.
The original purpose of facemasks, as I see it, was to prevent a surgeon and his (in the old days, they were almost all male) assistants from contaminating the surgical incision and the patient’s insides with bacteria-laden spittle, beard hairs, and the like. They seem to have been highly effective as the surgical infection rate has been very low for many years. So why won’t they work for the general public?
The authorities may be fearful of people de-identifying themselves. Just a thought.
This (wearing masks) has been done in Asia for years already and doesn’t provoke any second glances in places like Hong Kong and Tokyo. They are doing it in Europe. It is time we started doing it too.