DOH reminds the public on the proper way to wear face masks

The Department of Health (DOH) on Saturday reminded the public to properly wear face masks while outside their homes as COVID-19 was still a threat.

“Wear your mask, hindi po nasa baba dapat natatakpan po ang ilong at bibig,” Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said during the Laging Handa public briefing.

The DOH earlier announced that wearing face masks outdoors, regardless of what type of community quarantine protocols were in place, would always be part of the new normal in the country in a bid to reduce its spread.

Before COVID-19 became a global pandemic, the World Health Organization in January said that people who do not exhibit flu-like symptoms do not need to wear face masks.

More than two months later, the Philippine government mandated residents in areas covered by the enhanced community quarantine to wear face masks in public spaces to help slow the spread of the virus.

Improvised face masks may be used by individuals who are not inside health care facilities to ensure that supplies of surgical and N95 masks will not run out for the medical workers were at higher risk of being exposed to the novel coronavirus.

Apart from properly wearing of face masks, Vergeire said regular handwashing, cough etiquette, and physical distancing were the other important precautions the public needed to take seriously.

“Hindi mababago ang ating mga pamantayan o ‘yung ating mga kailangang gawin ‘pag tayo ay nasa labas,” she said.

The DOH earlier advised Filipinos to close the toilet lid when flushing to prevent the spread of the coronavirus and other diseases.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said there was still no evidence of transmission via fecal matter, but the DOH still urged the practice of proper toilet hygiene.

A study conducted by a Chinese university also found that 40 to 60 percent of particles from the toilet may be flung 3.49 feet into the air.

To increase protection against COVID-19, the DOH encouraged the use of face masks inside public toilets. — DVM, GMA News