PPE still required in patient care environments

Government announces easing of public health measures

The Government of Alberta has transitioned to the final step of its three-phase approach to easing public health measures. This includes ending mandatory masking on public transportation and ending mandatory isolation for those who have symptoms or test positive for Covid-19. The full news release can be found here.

What does this mean in the MFR setting?

Continuous masking remains in place for all patient care environments. Masking continues to apply to everyone in the healthcare setting, whether pre-hospital or in-hospital, including paramedics and medical first responders in patient care areas such as in the ambulance or at an emergency scene. While isolation is no longer mandatory, responders experiencing Covid-19 symptoms or who have tested positive for Covid-19 must not respond to medical calls.

Point-of-care risk assessment

Please continue to use your best judgement whether to don additional appropriate PPE based on point-of-care risk assessments. Aerosol-generating procedures (AGPs) are still considered high-risk and require N-95 respirators and eye protection. As always, physical distancing and hand hygiene are important tools and should be utilized whenever possible.