Face masks have been a standard part of a surgeon’s outerwear for a very long time. However, with the efficiency of masks being brought into question by the general public over the last year due to COVID, the question of “Why do surgeons need to wear face masks?” has been brought into the limelight. We plan on going over the reason why surgical masks have been used for years and the arguments against them. Hopefully, we can clear up why they’re still crucial for standard use.
The Reason We Use Them
In almost every hospital that exists, face masks are still required for use by all surgeons, assistants, and nurses involved in the operation of a patient. It’s believed the use of surgical masks helps decrease the number of infections that occur after surgery. This makes sense due to the fact that harmful germs can easily spread from the surgeon’s mouth or nose to the opening that’s been cut into the patient.
The reason for mask usage isn’t only for the patient’s protection, however. Not all surgeries go according to plan. Sometimes an incision is made in the wrong place, spraying blood through the air. It’s possible to have other potential contaminants sprayed, as well. Using a face mask prevents any of those things from entering the medical professional’s body through their nose or mouth.
The Arguments Against Them
Online, people are coming up with new arguments every day as to why face masks are pointless, but we don’t want to address those. Instead, there have been a handful of studies that show that a surgeon’s use of surgical masks has little to no effect on the possibility of infections post-surgery. There’s a lot that has gone into these studies, so if you want to know more details, we encourage you to do more research on them.
Our Recommendation
Regardless of the validity of those studies, we personally still highly recommend the use of face masks in all medical offices or surgical centers. Obviously, the use of masks doesn’t hurt the patients or surgeons as long as they’re changed out every couple of hours. Even if the change of infection goes down by a little, we feel that using them is worth it. Plus, the patient will probably feel more secure knowing their surgeon will be using a face mask.
If you agree with us as to why surgeons need to wear face masks and are in the market for more of them or other medical personal protective equipment for your practice, check out our selection available to you in our online store. We have a couple of different types to choose from that should be just what you’re looking for.