UK nurse leaders are calling for higher-quality face masks to be provided to staff to protect them from the new, highly contagious variant of the Covid-19 virus. The Royal College of Nursing (RCN) and the British Medical Association (BMA) warn that the personal protective equipment (PPE) they use is inadequate.

The association is now calling for an infection control review. While waiting for the results, they asked all staff to be assigned a higher quality level of PPE as a precaution. He wants staff to be provided with high-quality face masks that are used in intensive care units, called FFP2 or FFP3 masks.

RCN chief executive and general secretary Dame Donna Kinnair said nurses fear standard face masks may not be effective at protecting against the new variant of the coronavirus, and possible spread in the air in health care settings.

"This problem should not be allowed to drag on. Nursing staff must have full confidence that they are protected, ”he added.

He said staff exposed to the virus at work were angry at any allegations, including that they had stopped following health advice. Because this depends on the new variant and the lack of adequate self-protection.

Jane, who is not her real name, is a nurse from Yorkshire and a member of the grassroots campaign group Nurses United.

He said he contracted Covid in April 2020 after helping a coronavirus patient in an ambulance. Meanwhile he and the patient were wearing surgical masks.

He has been suffering from debilitating Covid symptoms since then, even taking the past four weeks off due to chronic fatigue, nine months after his initial infection.

In a letter to Jo Churchill, UK's Minister for Prevention, Public Health and Primary Care, Dame Donna said her staff were aware that anti-fluid surgical face masks and face masks were not protective against the smaller aerosol infective. In fact, surgical masks are currently recommended in most public health care settings and patient homes.

According to him, an adequate supply of PPE that meets the required specifications is essential to support nursing staff in carrying out their jobs safely. Without support to use appropriate PPE, nursing staff are risking their own lives, and the lives of their co-workers, families and patients, at risk.

The RCN shows a 22 percent increase in data in the average number of health care staff who quit due to Covid-19 in the first week of this month compared to the last week in December.