MASKS OFF

PEOPLE seeing doctors in the Primary Care Centre will still have to wear masks but not in non-clinical areas of the hospital, authorities have said.

The Gibraltar Health Authority (GHA) rang the changes after it said ‘levels of winter viruses, including influenza and COVID-19, circulating in Gibraltar’s population have now decreased’.

“Masks will continue to be required in clinical areas and will be offered to patients and visitors,” the GHA said. “The GHA strongly encourages those who have weakened immune systems to continue to wear masks when attending St Bernard’s Hospital.”

Restrictions

The latest hospital moves to relax mask restrictions come after Gibraltar weathered the pandemic storm over winter. Its highly vaccinated population has recorded no serious rise in cases apart from a small uptick after the Christmas festivities.

A sizable outbreak of 13 cases at elderly people’s homes in early January was the biggest drama of the winter. The GHA is still urging people to ‘avoid visiting the hospital or ERS with symptoms of a cold, flu, diarrhoea or vomiting’.