Nova Scotia Health facilities, including the IWK children’s hospital in Halifax, are bringing back masking requirements in anticipation of respiratory virus season.
In a release Tuesday, Nova Scotia Health said the changes will come into effect Thursday.
It’s a month after the masking mandate was initially dropped, and COVID-19 screeners removed from entrances.
As of Thursday, masks will be required upon entry and in common and public areas, including hallways, elevators, staircases and cafeterias.
Clinical areas where patients and caregivers are present will also require a mask. As well, inpatient and ambulatory care settings will have a masking rule.
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Masks will be made available at public entrances.
“Reducing the risk of transmission of respiratory viruses is everyone’s responsibility. Nova Scotia Health thanks everyone for their cooperation in protecting our most vulnerable patients and each other,” Nova Scotia Health noted in a release.
On Sept. 10, Nova Scotia Health facilities removed their COVID-19 screeners at entry and ended mandatory masking in common areas and most ambulatory/day surgery and clinic areas.
Elsewhere in Canada, mask mandates have been brought back to health-care settings. Some Ontario hospitals reinstated masking requirements this fall and British Columbia announced last week masking would be mandatory for many people in certain health-care settings.