The West African College of Surgeons and the Ghana Medical Association have both expressed worry over the wrongful use of face shields in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic.
In a joint press release, the two medical profesional Associations said “they have noted with alarm the increasing use of face shields without masks as protection against Covid-19.”
Describing the wrongful use of the face shields as dangerous, the release added that “continuous use of face shields without mask by the general public will lead to increased cases of Covid-19 in the country”
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According to the release, the use of face shields alone without a face mask does not give the user the needed protection against Covid-19 especially “in the light of potential airborne spread of the virus from emerging scientific evidence.”
The release has has also called on the general public to disregard social media unsubstantiated rumours that the continuous wearing of face masks will lead to a decrease in blood oxygen concentration as well as buildup of carbon dioxide.
“As Medical Doctors (especially surgeons), we wear face masks all the time in the course of work and no such derangement have been observed. We entreat the general public to disregard these social media reports” the release added.
At a recently held Ministry of Information Press briefing on the Covid-19 situation in the country the Head of Surveillance at the Ghana Health Service, Dr. Asiedu Bekoe cautioned Ghanaians against the recent preference of face shields over the use of face masks as a preventive measure against the spread of Covid19 in the country.
According to Dr. Bekoe, apart from social distancing and enhanced hygiene protocols, wearing of face masks is the surest way of preventing the spread of the disease and thus should not be compromised.
Source: ATLFMNEWS
