WATCH: Dr. Treurnicht provides guidelines for wearing a face mask

Dr. Florette Treurnicht from Medical Virology, NHLS & Wits University has partnered with the Department of Health to provide clarity on how to properly wear a face mask.

“Most of the time the masks were only worn to cover the mouth and not the nose and in some instances some masks are being worn around the neck.”

Dr. Treurnicht expressed her opinion of why people are not following guidelines, she suggests it’s due to some masks being too difficult to breathe through.

Handling the mask multiple times throughout the day, taking it off, putting it on puts you at a greater risk of infection as your hands become contaminated claims Dr. Treurnicht.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) debunked the claims that masks prevent infection as people tend to mishandle them by taking them off and putting them back on. However, they later retracted their statement and claimed it does in fact give a small line of defense if handled correctly.