Coronavirus Australia: How to wear a face mask correctly

With growing calls for face masks to become mandatory across Australia, it’s worth making sure you know how to wear a mask correctly.

Australia’s interest in face masks has just gone up a notch with new rules enforcing face coverings in Victoria and calls for them to be mandatory in other parts of the country.

While the Australian government has been slow to embrace face masks, a second spike of cases in Victoria has led to a shift in advice from the Victorian and the Federal government. They now say wearing a mask or face covering helps stop the spread of COVID-19 in areas with community transmission.

“Face coverings are helpful to stop droplets spreading when someone speaks, laughs, coughs, or sneezes, including someone who has coronavirus (COVID-19) and is contagious, but feels well,” the DHHS said.

But face masks are only effective if they’re worn the right way.

RELATED: Key face mask questions answered

WHAT ARE VICTORIA’S FACE MASK RULES?

All residents who live in Melbourne or the Mitchell Shire have to wear a face mask while they are outside of their homes.

There are a few exemptions. Children under the age of 12, and those with medical conditions that affect their breathing, including asthma, do not have to wear face masks.

People with a disability are not exempt from wearing masks, unless it is impractical or unsafe to do so for medical reasons, or makes that person unable to communicate, or puts them at risk in another way.

WHEN SHOULD I WEAR A MASK?

Everyone aged 12 or older in metropolitan Melbourne and Mitchell Shire must wear a mask when outside the home. In NSW residents are advised to wear masks in public, and there are calls for masks to be used on public transport.

WHAT IF I WANT TO TAKE MY MASK OFF?

• Wash your hands for at least 20 seconds with soap and water or use alcohol-based hand sanitiser containing at least 60 per cent alcohol

• Don’t touch the front of the mask or your face

• Carefully remove your mask by grasping the ear loops or untying the ties. For masks with a pair of ties, unfasten the bottom one first, then the top one

• If your mask has filters, remove them and throw them away. Fold the mask and put it directly into the laundry or into a disposable or washable bag for laundering. Single use surgical masks should be disposed of responsibly

• Clean your hands again

• Only a short break should be required