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Doctors urge Government to make face masks mandatory in healthcare settings

A person wears a face mask outside London's University College Hospital - Tolga Akmen/AFP 
A person wears a face mask outside London's University College Hospital - Tolga Akmen/AFP
Coronavirus Article Bar with counter
Coronavirus Article Bar with counter

Medics have called for the Government to make masks compulsory in healthcare settings as laws on face coverings are extended to cover churches and cinemas, but not hospitals.

From Saturday, laws that make face coverings mandatory in shops and on public transport will be extended to cover places of worship, museums and cinemas.

But advice that they should also be worn by visitors to healthcare settings such as hospitals and GP practices has no legal force.

The Medical Protection Society, which represents doctors, has urged ministers to reconsider and extend the laws to protect medics. The organisation's survey of 562 doctors found that 84 per cent thought it should be mandatory for those attending a healthcare setting to wear a face covering.

The Government has said face coverings are "needed" in NHS settings including hospitals and GP surgeries, but it is not a legal requirement to wear one.

Last week, NHS England told GPs that patients should not be refused entry or care if they are unable to, or refuse to, wear a mask.

This was despite concern from health officials and scientific advisers that infections in the community have been fuelled by transmission within healthcare settings in recent months.

Dr Pallavi Bradshaw, the medicolegal lead in risk prevention at MPS, said medics had sought advice because they did not know how to handle "confrontational" and "distressing" situations in which patients refuse to wear a mask without a valid reason.

"The exclusion of healthcare settings in the latest extension of the law will leave many healthcare workers, who are still under immense pressure due to the pandemic, feeling that their safety is not a priority," she said.

"It cannot be right that those who have been at the forefront of the fight against Covid-19 should be put at unnecessary risk by patients who refuse to wear a face mask because it is not compulsory."

A Department of Health and Social Care spokesman said: "It is mandatory for face coverings to be worn on public transport and in enclosed spaces like shops and supermarkets, and we strongly encourage the wearing of face coverings in other public spaces, such as healthcare settings, where social distancing may be difficult and where you come into contact with people you do not normally meet.

"This is a new virus and, as always, we will keep these measures under review as new evidence comes to light."