Health systems are complex. We all know that. With the pandemic, public health guidance exacerbated that complexity as it must be adjusted based on new facts, emerging science about the virus and the ongoing management of other societal issues. As guidance evolves over time to adjust to the unfolding reality, confusion is a likely side effect even for very basic things such as wearing a mask or not and the need to get a covid-19 test or not. But do we really know why we do it? Perhaps answering that basic question may reveal why such simple matters may not always be obvious to understand.
Why do wear masks? To protect ourselves, of course! Well… yes and no. It is true that we wear masks to protect ourselves but perhaps in ways that are different than we may think. In fact, one of the main benefits of wearing masks is to protect ourselves by protecting others. It is a public health tool to control the spread of the virus and not necessarily a tool to protect ourselves against potential exposure at the moment we wear it. Unless we are health professionals with special medical grade equipment, we mainly wear masks not to infect others and achieve herd protection.
Another reason why wearing masks is a way to protect ourselves is to see it as an obvious reminder that we are in a pandemic and need to adopt behaviors that will, indeed, protect ourselves such as social distancing. We could easily forget it – especially as we adapted to a new social reality – and wearing a mask is a good reminder. Wearing a mask is a simple tool that is not obvious to understand when guidance evolves as to when and where we need to wear it. There are also a number of psychological effects associated with masks beyond the simple reminder it represents that may be worth considering.
Another basic public health tool that has caused some confusion is the covid-19 testing requirement. When should we get tested or not? Why is it that we had to get tested at the outset of the pandemic and now sometimes we are told that it is not necessary or even reliable? Which is it? Confusing, isn’t it? Truth is that even decision-makers and scientists do not always agree on how we need to frame the testing requirement. As most of us are not public health experts, this easily gets confusing. Beyond our wish to know for our own health, covid-19 testing is intimately tied to the efforts deployed to trace back who has been in contact with a positive case in order to implement measures aimed at controlling the spread such as the 14-day quarantine.
Covid-19 testing is also used in a more targeted way to fuel ongoing epidemiological science updates, to help manage isolated outbreaks and as a means to protect specific service providers such as health professionals. That’s why, for instance, we are required to get tested before undergoing surgery at the hospital. In a nutshell, covid-19 testing is a simple tool that is not obvious to understand when guidance evolves or experts disagree as to when we need to do it but it remains paramount in our fight.
Even though all this may not be obvious to the broad population, the bottom line may nevertheless be simple: if there is no harm or unwanted consequences to wearing a mask or getting tested, perhaps doing it when our judgment calls for it may be the wise thing to do right now. Many benefits may come from doing it and it often helps reduce individual and / or social anxiety. This is not to say that we should all rush to get tested whenever we sneeze and wear masks while taking a shower. Exercising judgment is always key. But considering simple tools for what they are and using them wisely is obviously advisable. There are other simple and important tools available such as the vastly discussed covid-19 vaccination effort. Exploring them would certainly unveil other interesting findings. But these are different stories and good ones for future articles…
In the meantime, may you be well, may you be happy.
B.