Covid-19: Make a home-made face mask
Homemade face masks are an affordable and effective way to limit the spread of Covid-19.
SOUTH Africa has over 1 000 cases of the Covid-19 virus, and two deaths, and according to Dr Piet Streicher, Managing Director of BulkSMS, the spread of the virus could slow down if everyone wears a face mask in public or when caring for a relative with virus symptoms at home.
Streicher said that according to David Price, an ICU Pulmonologist treating Covid-19 patients, any barrier between your hands and your face is beneficial. Wearing a mask helps someone with the virus not to give it to others, and helps someone without the virus avoid being infected.
All health workers in hospitals must have face masks as they are in close contact with coughing patients and at risk of contracting the virus, and they should wear N95 masks.
Other South Africans can help make sure health workers have enough of these masks by wearing home-made masks instead.
Price said one way to practice to not touch your face would be to wear a homemade face mask at home.
The face mask will make you more aware of when you touch your face. This needs to be practiced long before you wear a homemade facemask in public.
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Masks can be made from variety of readily available materials. T-shirt material and pillowcase material have been shown to adequately filter droplets and has good breathability.
A T-shirt head opening can be worn at eye level, with the sleeves tied behind the head. Make sure that you cover your chin with the mask. There is a proliferation in DIY face mask solutions on the internet.
During the lockdown period, the intention is for you to only go out to buy food or medicine.
This should be a short mission avoiding the prolonged wear risks. When you go out, put on a clean homemade mask and focus on not touching your face. When arriving home, take off the mask and wash both your mask and your hands with soap and water.
“Homemade face masks are an affordable and effective way to limit the spread of Covid-19. Many people are asymptomatic and are actively spreading the virus simply by speaking. When you speak there are always droplets coming out of your mouth.
Be an example to others during lockdown, by publicising your homemade face masks on social media and encouraging others to do the same. By doing this, this habit could potentially spread faster than the virus itself,” said Streicher.
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