Question

A nurse on a medical unit is caring for a group of clients.For which of the FOLLWOING tasks should the nurse wear a face mask?

Answer 1

Face mask is one of the components of personal protective equipment which is used by the health care worker to protect against infectious material . Personal protective equipment prevents contact with infectious agents by creating barrier between health care worker and potential infectious material .

Two main reasons for wearing a face mask are :-

- To prevent respiratory droplet being expelled from mouth and nose into the environment and to prevent inhalation of droplet or other pollutants from the environment.

- In conjugation with eye protection to prevent exposure of wearers mucous membrane from body fluids splashing.

Face mask must be used when :-

- Engaged in procedures likely to generate droplets of blood / body fluid .

- During surgeries to protect wound from staff breathing ( to prevent droplet from being expelled into environment )

- when the nurse comes in contact with a infectious patient like patients with positive respiratory disease example TB , Ebola , Swine flu etc .

- when nurse comes in contact with immunocompromised patients to prevent patient from staff breathing (to prevent droplet from being expelled from the nose to the surrounding environment of patient )