From tomorrow (Thursday), visitors and staff at St Mary’s Hospital are no longer required to wear face masks as the Government drops the COVID alert level from 3 to 2.
These changes have been made in line with national guidance on the mandated use of face masks in healthcare settings as the number of COVID cases drops.
The Isle of Wight NHS Trust is asking those in oncology, haematology and chemotherapy departments to continue wearing a mask, however.
Visitors who are presenting with respiratory / COVID symptoms, are on a respiratory pathway, or are immunocompromised, should wear a face mask if this can be tolerated and deemed safe.
Juliet Pearce, Director of Nursing, Midwifery and AHPs, has said:
“Thank you to everyone who has followed the range of infection prevention and control guidance in place throughout the pandemic and more recently when we felt it necessary to reintroduce mask wearing on our sites. The actions have made a positive difference to our community.
“The Island’s level of COVID is currently low, however this guidance may change again at any time if there is a known or suspected outbreak of COVID, or a new variant emerges.”
Further information can be found at www.iow.nhs.uk/visiting.
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