NHS staff in Scotland are continuing to raise concerns about the safety of PPE and specifically when testing patients for Covid-19.
The transmission of the virus is thought to occur mainly through respiratory droplets generated by coughing and sneezing and through contact with contaminated surfaces.
According to the Scottish Government, NHS staff are directed to use surgical Type IIR fluid-resistant masks when caring for a patient, known or suspected to be infected with the virus.
However NHS staff believe health workers involved in testing should be wearing a higher grade of mask - an FFP2 or FFP3 - which are designed to protect against airborne particles.
READ MORE: No new Covid deaths for 29th day as 52 new cases confirmed
The UK government has not designated Covid testing as an “aerosol generating procedure," which means it results in the production of airborne particles or respiratory droplets.
However, there is some debate over this as testing involves pushing a swab stick down the throat or up the nose, which healthcare workers say usually leads to the patient coughing involuntarily.
World Health Organisation (WHO) guidelines state that “airborne precautions” should be taken when performing aerosol generating procedures.
Thousands of police officers in Scotland are being fitted with FFP3 respirator masks, which are used by NHS staff during surgery or by dentists when drilling teeth.
One Glasgow nurse said: “The police have been fitted with FFP3 masks, yet we are the ones most likely to catch the virus.
"I am not carrying out testing, I have refused to do it but when you test a patient you have to put the swab right down to the back of their throat and up their nose as far as you can. That produces a cough, a sneeze, flem or sick.
“The WHO say any excretions at all like this is aerosol."
Another health source involved in resuscitation medicine, suggested that the NHS should be “erring on the side of caution” regarding staff PPE safety as the threat of a second wave rises.
READ MORE: Nicola Sturgeon says Celtic and Aberdeen 'shouldn't expect to play' this weekend
Scottish Labour health spokeswoman Monica Lennon said it was “deeply concerning” that NHS workers were still expressing concerns about the safety of PPE.
A Scottish Government spokesperson said: “All PPE is supplied by National Procurement and has to comply with the relevant health and safety standards.
“National and international guidance consistently recommends that health care workers should wear a Type IIR FRSM as PPE when caring for a patient known, or suspected, to be infected with COVID-19.
“The transmission of COVID-19 is thought to occur mainly through respiratory droplets generated by coughing and sneezing, and through contact with contaminated surfaces.
“Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic we have remained in constant dialogue with frontline staff across health and social care.
“We have taken decisive action to respond to concerns around provision of PPE, including strengthening and expanding supplies, proactively addressing queries about PPE provision and usage, and developing new guidance for the service in partnership.”
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules here