Covid-19: Universal mask requirement for nursing home staff removed

Healthcare workers are no longer required to wear face masks for all interactions with patients in nursing homes and other residential care facilities. New HSE Covid-19 guidance states that staff should continue to wear high-grade masks when dealing with infectious patients or where there is a high risk of undiagnosed cases being present.

A universal mask-wearing requirement was introduced at the height of the pandemic in 2020 and remains in place in other healthcare settings such as hospitals.

In low-risk settings, the new guidelines state that staff can revert to standard (pre-pandemic) precautions, which includes a risk assessment of whether a surgical mask or other protective equipment is needed. Staff in non-clinical settings are not required to wear a surgical mask, “though they may choose to do so”.

The guidelines emphasise that social activity is an essential part of community life in the care facility and should no longer be limited on infection control grounds, other than when a resident is infectious or an outbreak needs to be managed.

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With previous guidance on visits now “retired”, the HSE advises full access should be facilitated “to the greatest degree practical for all residents”.

“Access may be very limited for a period of time in the early stages of dealing with an outbreak but a total withdrawal of access is not appropriate,” it states.

Covid-19 testing of residents with no symptoms on transfer or admission is “generally” not required, the guidelines say.

When interacting with patients who have respiratory symptoms, staff should wear a surgical or respirator mask and these higher-grade masks should be offered to patients in multi-bed wards who are exposed to other patients with symptoms. Residents should have access to surgical or respirator masks if that is their wish, while unvaccinated or immunocompromised residents “should be facilitated” to wear a mask in busy areas or during transport if they wish to do so.