Recently, Nova Scotia Health announced it will reinstate a mandatory mask policy. This policy should extend to all of its facilities, including its outpatient clinics and hospitals. The decision prioritizes shielding the most vulnerable communities from worsening respiratory diseases. This is particularly urgent as the province nears peak flu season. Health officials are urging residents not to miss out on this simple, preventative step. It’s more important than ever this year, with an especially early surge of respiratory illness cases.
As well, Shelley McNeil is an infectious disease physician and senior medical director, Emerging and Re-emerging Infections Network, Nova Scotia Health. In that context, Dr. Frieden said the mask mandate acts as a seasonal public health response. Second, it recognizes the greater risk being taken by patients with known co-morbid health conditions during this unprecedented time. “It’s important to remember that we take care of the most vulnerable Nova Scotians,” McNeil stated.
Early Flu Activity and Rising Cases
As McNeil said, flu season in Nova Scotia is usually just starting to ramp up from late December to the early part of January. This year, every kind of respiratory virus shot up dramatically after the first of December. Officials have attributed some of this trend to the H3N2 flu strain. Especially for older adults and for people with weakened immune systems, this strain has been responsible for a higher rate of severe illness.
McNeil noted that healthy adults are generally only exposed to mild symptoms that manifest like a cold. At the same time, it’s patients in treatment who suffer the most dire consequences. “They’re often viruses that can make their heart failure worse, their COPD worse, or can cause pneumonia and other severe illnesses,” she explained.
We are bringing back mask masking because of the abnormally early round of flu. This decision is to keep our patients — many of whom are already more vulnerable to serious complications — safe. “We’re not, of course, believing that we’re going to eliminate transmission of respiratory viruses,” McNeil added. “But we are doing what we can to reduce the transmission in our hospitals and facilities.”
Implementation of Mask Policy
Masks will now be required when entering all Nova Scotia Health facilities. This preventive measure is focused squarely on reducing the risk of transmission in healthcare environments where our most vulnerable patients are regularly treated.
McNeil made the point that public health success, like the adoption of mask wearing, can be a small policy action with large positive effects on public health. “This is a small thing that we can all do to try to help reduce the risk of those folks catching one of these viruses,” she stated.
“Even with high levels of vaccination, she conceded there is going to be reduced effectiveness in preventing severe outcomes given the new variants that are circulating. “We may see less benefit, certainly not no benefit, but we may see less benefit from vaccination in preventing severe outcomes,” she noted.
