During the 1918 global flu epidemic, medical personnel routinely adopted masks to protect themselves, and many cities required them in public.
However, face masks are not designed to seal tightly against the face to prevent the inhalation of small viruses such as COVID-19.
To get protection from both face masks and respirators, they need to be worn correctly and consistently while in use.
Used masks should be considered as potentially infectious medical waste.
The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends that “healthy people, including those who don’t exhibit COVID-19 symptoms, only wear masks when taking care of someone infected with the contagion.”
