This is why respirators need to be mandatory in hospitals.

Babies, people with certain disabilities & some health conditions need others to mask to protect them.

This hospital shouldn’t be “scrambling”. Make masks mandatory & protect patients and staff.

Clean & ventilate the air too!

#measles #airborne #keepmasksinhealthcare #wearamask #texas #uspoli #covidisairborne #covidisnotover #chronicillness

I wrote a guest article for Healthy Debate that looks at why we need mandatory masks in healthcare, why surgical masks aren’t enough, and how the mounting threats to public health are putting lives at risk.

If you’re a healthcare worker, mask up.

Show us you take your oath to “do no harm” seriously

https://healthydebate.ca/2025/03/topic/wear-mask-plea-health-care-workers/

#covidisairborne #covidisnotover #longcovid #pandemic #publichealth #wearamask #n95 #measles #h5n1 #keepmasksinhealthcare #chronicillness #disability

Prior to Covid it was normal to mask in the NICU. People understood that premature babies are as vulnerable as they come and need to protected.

Now? Gowns & gloves but no masking.

The damage caused by anti mask rhetoric will be felt for years (possibly decades) to come.

Mask mandates belong in healthcare. We should be providing free respirators at the door & cleaning and ventilating the air.

If you’re a healthcare worker who doesn’t think you need to mask, please read my plea on behalf of vulnerable patients:

https://www.disabledginger.com/p/a-plea-to-maskless-healthcare-workers

We know masks in healthcare stop the spread of airborne disease. We know they reduce the risk of hospital acquired COVID (which has a 10% mortality rate).

We know respirators work even better.

So why aren’t we masking? Why are patients having to bear the brunt of infection control?

https://www.disabledginger.com/p/we-need-mandatory-masking-in-healthcare

#covidisairborne #covidisnotover #longcovid #chronicillness #ableism #eugenics #keepmasksinhealthcare #disability

There’s measles outbreaks in multiple States now, and every time a new cluster is announced there’s an exposure at an ER

Why? Because that’s where the sick people go

It’s one of the reasons disabled people often say they won’t go to the ER unless literally dying.

They’re not safe places for us:

https://www.disabledginger.com/p/i-wont-go-to-the-er-unless-im-literally

#disability #chronicillness #disabilityrights #ableism #eugenics #healthcare #measles #COVIDisAirborne #keepmasksinhealthcare

Patients have been bearing the brunt of infection control in hospitals, having to go to great lengths to protect themselves and their loved ones.

They’re unfairly judged, psychologized and mistreated for masking and/or requesting staff mask.

Covid is still here. It’s still killing and disabling people. We’re also seeing outbreaks of tuberculosis, measles and the worst flu season in over a decade.

Public health is being systematically dismantled and gagged by the Trump administration, allowing misinformation and disinformation to flourish and putting even more lives at risk.

Why don’t we have mandatory masking in healthcare? Why are we killing and disabling patients who go there for help? Who can’t ‘just stay home’?

The second article in my Masks in Healthcare series looks at patient stories, retaliation, and what we can do to make hospitals safer for everyone.

https://www.disabledginger.com/p/we-need-mandatory-masking-in-healthcare

#covidisairborne #covidisnotover #longcovid #sarscov2 #chronicillness #healthcare #keepmasksinhealthcare #wearamask #ableism #eugenics #disability

There are measles outbreaks in the U.S. and Canada. A disease we eradicated is making a comeback due to dangerous anti-vaxx rhetoric.

We need mandatory masking in healthcare, and we need it now.

A respirator protects against Covid, measles & more.

There’s no excuse to expose patients when we have the tools to prevent it:

https://www.disabledginger.com/p/a-plea-to-maskless-healthcare-workers

#masksinhealthcare #measles #longcovid #covidisairborne #covidisnotover #sarscov2 #n95 #keepmasksinhealthcare #h5n1 #publichealth #donoharm

Had my first healthcare worker refuse to mask for me. I’ve had many scoff, make accusations of “anxiety” or wear their mask wrong… but this was my first outright “no”.

My chart is documented that I’m immune compromised & require staff to mask. The facility had a policy that if asked, staff will wear.

I was told “no I need to breathe to do my job”. I stood firm & said I’m high risk and masks are required.

They declined again and said they’re “claustrophobic”.

I said “I’m sorry to hear that but you work in healthcare. Being able to wear a mask is a requirement of your job. Please put one on before coming near me” A firm no. They refused to check my chart. Refused to show concern or empathy.

What I did next not all patients would be comfortable with, but I was there for a test that meant this HCW would be up close in my face for an extended time. I was also visibly sick and had already passed out once due to low blood pressure. Putting me at risk for their own comfort was NOT ok.

I said “no one comes near me without a mask. If you’re unwilling to accommodate my disability, go find me someone who is”

They were NOT happy. Stormed out and came back with another HCW who was wearing a mask.

When they returned they refused to leave the room. I asked repeatedly and said I was uncomfortable with them remaining and didn’t want extra people around for the exam. They said I was being “unreasonable”. They remained in the room, maskless, watching me undergo a sensitive exam.

at that point I just wanted the test over with so I could leave. I was exhausted, disappointed and felt utterly disrespected. Everyone who works in a hospital setting is required to be able to Don and doff a mask. If this person genuinely couldn’t, they shouldn’t be seeing patients

When I went to leave I told them, firmly but politely, that if they genuinely can’t do such a small thing to protect the most vulnerable patients they should reconsider working in healthcare. I’ve never seen someone sneer like that. I thought flames would shoot out of their ears

I asked for their full name to lodge an official complaint and they refused. It’s hard to believe this is where we’re at. Before Covid I never had a healthcare worker refuse to mask. I also noticed this HCW wasn’t wearing gloves when the others were.

I took detailed notes the moment I exited the hospital so that I could lodge a complaint without the name, but the entire experience robbed me of spoons and energy. Not every chronically ill patient would be able to lodge a complaint or push for a masked HCW the way I was. Nor should we have to.

This interaction will feature prominently in my next article about masks in healthcare.

I need all HCWs to understand the tremendous privilege and responsibility they have to their patients. We are putting our lives in your hands. Your comfort or personal politics must be left outside the hospital.

If you missed the first article in the series, you can read it here:

https://www.disabledginger.com/p/a-plea-to-maskless-healthcare-workers

#ableism #eugenics #disability #disabilityrights #keepmasksinhealthcare #covidisairborne #covidisnotover #sarscov2 #WearAMask

In the hospital for cardiac testing & there’s a mask mandate in place.

My chart says I’m high risk.

Tech comes in with mask under her nose.

Me: “Can you please pull up your mask I’m immune compromised.”

Her: Big sigh, pulls it up “You’ve got some serious Covid anxiety eh?”

Me: “not anxiety, I’m being rational. Colds have put me in the hospital.”

Her: Another big sigh

As I’m leaving I say: “It seems really quiet here today.”

Her: “Yeah half the staff are out sick. You’re actually lucky they didn’t cancel your appointment.”

Me: Internal shrieking

#ableism #eugenics #covidisairborne #covidisnotover #wearamask #sarscov2 #disability #keepmasksinhealthcare

How many people are currently suffering at home because they know they need the hospital but are afraid to go because of risk of COVID?

Why aren’t we controlling spread?

Hospital acquired Covid has a 10% mortality rate, yet most HCWs won’t mask

https://www.disabledginger.com/p/a-plea-to-maskless-healthcare-workers

#COVIDisAirborne #covidisnotover #keepmasksinhealthcare #safehealthcare #sarscov2 #chronicillness #longcovid

Whenever I catch up on the UK Covid inquiry - I’m horrified by how much denial and ignorance is on display.

By the fact that they’re discussing the death and disability of millions - yet continue to refer to the pandemic in the past tense.

The only mask I’ve seen was on Cathy Finnis - a clinically vulnerable patient who testified as to how difficult it is to access safe care. No one else in the room masked to protect HER.

Perhaps the most galling example of denial is this video of Matt Hancock - where he talks about the importance of vaccination because without it healthcare workers may unintentionally infect someone in their care.

They’re literally infecting people in their care now. The NHS has discouraged healthcare workers from testing - and IF they do test positive they don’t have to isolate. There’s no requirement to test negative before returning to work. They can treat patients knowing they have covid - and they aren’t even required to wear a respirator.

Hospital acquired covid has a 10% fatality rate and yet many facilities are doing absolutely nothing to protect the most vulnerable among us.

Patients like me didn’t ask to be clinically vulnerable. We didn’t get a choice in being high risk. We can’t “stay home” from the hospital. We go for life saving care - only to have our lives and baselines put at risk because no one is mitigating the spread of Covid.

It would be so easy to mandate masks in healthcare. To upgrade air quality and ventilation to reduce the spread. To have regular testing and ensure those who are positive are isolated.

They just don’t want to. We’re acceptable losses. Expendable. Not worthy of protection.

After all - how many times have we heard “only the vulnerable are at risk” as a means of justifying a whole host of risky and unjustifiable behaviour?

At this point I find it hard to say that infecting patients is “unintentional”. I desperately want to give people the benefit of the doubt - but we are five years into this and we KNOW it’s airborne.

If you’re working in healthcare and choosing not to test, isolate or mask - is it unintentional when you infect a patient? Or inevitable?

These questions keep me up at night.

I feel absolutely sick knowing people like me can no longer access safe healthcare. I feel deep unyielding pain when I think of all those we’ve already lost. I feel anger and rage when I consider how easy it would be to change course - and how few people care enough to even bother to try.

We can do better. We must do better. We all share the air - we’re not safe until everyone is safe.

#ukcovidinquiry #masksinhealthcare #sarscov2 #pandemic #covidisairborne #covidisnotover #keepmasksinhealthcare #WearARespie #ableism #eugenics #disability #clinicallyvulnerable #LongCOVID #chronicillness

UK Covid Inquiry: Adam Wagner asks Eluned Morgan if she agrees air filtration should be investigated for use against COVID in hospitals.

She says "yes" but laments her air purifier was worst present she ever got, she barely uses it & has "no idea" if it made any difference.

Good grief - you have to use it for it to work!

This response was so privileged and callous. I wonder if she realizes how many people would LOVE to be gifted an air purifier or desperately wish healthcare facilities cared enough about their patients to clean the air?

#UKCovidInquiry #cleanair #COVIDisAirborne #CovidIsNotOver #clinicallyvulnerable #keepmasksinhealthcare #ableism #privilege #eugenics

“If you’ve been fighting for Covid mitigations for the last five years - you more than likely saw this coming. It was painfully obvious when the great unmasking occurred that many people on BOTH sides of the aisle didn’t care about the “vulnerable”. Didn’t care about community or protecting their neighbours. Didn’t care about anything other than their own ability to go to brunch, travel, socialize and get ‘back to normal.’

I’m not saying people should have shuttered inside their homes forever. None of us are. But they should have kept masking. There was no reason to stop. Respirators are highly effective at stopping the spread of Covid. The vast majority of people CAN wear them. We have mask blocs all over the world to provide masks to people who can’t afford them. It’s a simple thing you can do to protect yourself and - perhaps more importantly - protect others.”

If you missed my latest - it’s about the U.S. election, disability rights, eugenics, fascism and how we got to where we are. Perhaps more importantly - it’s about what comes next.

https://www.disabledginger.com/p/how-did-we-get-here-and-what-comes

#CovidIsAirborne #CovidCautious #CovidIsNotOver #CleanAir #WearaMask #Disability #LongCovid #Ableism #Denial #CleanAir #Pandemic #PublicHealth #InfectionControl #Eugenics #SafeHealthcare #N95 #Respirators #MasksWork #MaskUp #Spoonie #Discrimination #Dysautonomia #mecfs #pots #mcas #communitycare #wearamask #chronicillness #keepmasksinhealthcare #MaskBans #NoMaskBans #fascism #election2024

People spend their lives running from suffering. Doing whatever they can to avoid feeling pain. The idea of “forever suffering” is terrifying to them. I think this fear is behind a lot of the disdain we see directed at disabled people.

We remind others that suffering can be permanent. That it can’t always be outrun.

We exist in the grey. Our illnesses won’t kill us - but they also won’t ever get better. There’s no cure on the horizon. No “are you better yet?”

This reality scares the crap out of people.

As such - they pull away from us. They abandon us or treat us with such disdain that we walk away from them. The ones that stay often expect us to hide how sick we are. To plaster a smile on our face and say we’re “fine” so that they don’t have to feel uncomfortable.

When they ask how we’re feeling or if we’re “any better”… they don’t want to hear the truth. In fact - if you tell them the truth you could find yourself facing a lecture on “positive thinking” or how you just need to “try harder” and you will suddenly overcome your illnesses.

People are unable or unwilling to face the realities of chronic illness - so they make it harder for us to face it as well. They treat it like it’s our fault. Like we did something to become ill or like we could get better if we “really wanted to”.

They will push our boundaries, gaslight us and yes - put us at risk for covid. So this is your reminder that it is ok to set and hold boundaries. It’s ok to protect yourself. If someone won’t be there at your worst - they don’t deserve you.

https://www.disabledginger.com/p/we-dont-do-sick-if-you-cant-hide


#CovidIsAirborne #CovidCautious #CovidIsNotOver #CleanAir #WearaMask #Disability #LongCovid #Ableism #Denial #CleanAir #Pandemic #PublicHealth #InfectionControl #Eugenics #SafeHealthcare #N95 #Respirators #MasksWork #MaskUp #Spoonie #Discrimination #Dysautonomia #mecfs #pots #mcas #communitycare #wearamask #chronicillness #keepmasksinhealthcare #MaskBans #NoMaskBans