Face covering requirements in practices

NHS England confirmed on 15 July 2021 that Public Health England’s infection prevention and control (IPC) guidance still applies to patient-facing healthcare settings, ahead of the law around mask wearing coming to an end on Monday. From a practical point of view this means practice staff can rely on mask wearing being NHS policy, rather than an individual practice decision, when asking patients to wear a face covering.

We have produced a poster that practices may wish to put up in waiting rooms, reminding patients of the importance of wearing a mask, and designed to reflect the diversity of London’s population.

We have been campaigning on the issue of face masks since the Government announced they would be dropped as a legal requirement two weeks ago, alongside a wider piece of work pushing back against abuse of practice staff by people opposed to mask wearing and the Covid vaccination campaign. Dr Michelle Drage, our CEO, spoke to The Guardian on Wednesday and shared examples of abuse fed back to us by London practices. Dr Drage was also quoted in Pulse and GPOnline prior to yesterday’s announcement, calling for a firmer line from NHS England on mask wearing.

Download colour version – A4 PDF

Download black and white version – A4 PDF

The BMA have also produced a poster covering masks and other IPC measures. Download here.

Last updated : 07 Oct 2021

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