Letters | Coronavirus: if Hongkongers insist on wearing a mask, at least wear it correctly

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A woman takes off her face mask for a moment to eat a banana on a street in Hong Kong on February 14. Masks are effective only when used in combination with frequent hand-cleaning, and should not be touched while being used. The incorrect use of masks increases the risk of infection. Photo: AP

Published: 6:45am, 21 Feb 2020Updated: 6:45am, 21 Feb 2020

The World Health Organisation states that you only need to wear masks if you are ill: “If you are healthy, you only need to wear a mask if you are taking care of a person with suspected 2019-nCoV infection.” Unnecessarily wearing a mask may instil a false sense of confidence and you may then not follow personal hygiene requirements such as washing hands.

The WHO says that if you must wear a mask, be aware they are effective only when used in combination with frequent hand-cleaning. Avoid touching the mask while using it; if you do, clean your hands.

It appears that some people in Hong Kong have not read the WHO’s recommendations.

In particular, many people do not follow the WHO’s suggestion of washing their hands after touching the front of the mask. For example, people pull down their mask, unscrew their water bottle with the same hand and then drink from the water bottle. So any germs on the front of their mask are transferred to their hands to the bottle and then to their mouths.

Smokers pull down their masks, hold a cigarette with the same hand and then stick the cigarette in their mouths. People pull down their masks so their phones can perform facial recognition and then immediately use the same hand to eat with.

Some people say that any mask is better protection than no mask. Well, it isn’t because of the way people wear the masks. So in the instances above, wearing a mask has actually increased these people’s chances of getting sick.