Don't want to mask up? Try a face shield

It’s become the mantra of government leaders and health officials and it’s a flash point for others who refuse to abide by it: Wear a mask.

Now, there is an alternative to the face masks that have become a part of life in the age of the coronavirus pandemic: A clear plastic face shield that — if worn properly — can achieve the same result, some medical experts say.

Viriya Hajiboo works at Burgh Thai restaurant in Verona. Hajiboo said she prefers to wear both a face mask and a face shield she made for herself.

“It’s like extra confidence. I feel most comfortable with both,” Hajiboo said. “We have to start protecting ourselves and our customers and community.”

Nick Drombosky is an entrepreneur whose company, Fiks Reflective, transitioned from producing reflective bicycle accessories to producing about 10,000 face shields to donate to hospitals. He has offices in Pittsburgh and Los Angeles.

Drombosky noted that some people prefer the shields over the masks.

“I think you’re seeing a lot of people wanting to use face shields over face masks because you can see the person. I think that’s the main benefit,” he said. “People say that face masks are uncomfortable. A face shield may be more comfortable, especially in the short-term. But wearing anything for eight to 10 hours is not going to be comfortable.”

1 expert favors shields for general public

The shields, already worn by some medical professionals, could be as effective as cloth masks in preventing the spread of covid-19.

“I think face shields are probably a superior solution rather than face masks for the general public,” said Dr. Amesh Adalja, a Pittsburgh-based infectious disease and critical care physician.

So far, the shields are not recommended for use by the general population, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The shields can be worn like hats, with a piece of plastic that covers all or most of the face.

“CDC does not recommend use of face shields for normal everyday activities or as a substitute for cloth face coverings,” the federal agency advises on its website. “It is not known if face shields provide any benefit as source control to protect others from the spray of respiratory particles.”

Face shields could be easier for people to properly wear to prevent spreading the virus to others, Adalja said.

Wearing shields also prevents people from touching their face, he said.

Face shields also protect the eyes, something face masks can’t do at all, Drombosky pointed out.

“Face shields protect your eyes from aerosol particles in most scenarios,” he said. “The big thing with face shields is there’s a lot of ways to manufacture them.”

The cost to produce a face shield varies. As the pandemic began, Drombosky said the material cost was about $1 per shield. When supplies were harder to come by and price gouging was running rampant, he said it could cost up to $3.15 for the material. Now, it’s back down to about a dollar.

Masks effective, yet some still resist

Although cloth face masks are recommended by federal, state and county health leaders — and mandated in Pennsylvania to enter businesses — some have resisted wearing them, while others wear them incorrectly.

Masks need to be worn properly to be effective, and anyone who is out-and-about can see that many aren’t doing so, Adalja said.

“I would say the vast majority of people do not wear a mask properly,” he said.

But worn properly, masks likely prevent those who unwittingly have the virus from spreading it to others, something Pennsylvania Secretary of Health Rachel Levine reminds everyone at each of her briefings.

Face shields also would fulfill the aim of Levine’s request, according to state health department spokeswoman Maggi Mumma.

“Wearing a mask in public, whether walking on the street, inside a store, or any other public place is a sign that we are in this together, and shows respect to essential workers, including health care workers regardless of whether that is a mask or a face shield,” Mumma said.

Allegheny County Health Director Debra Bogen said shields can work in place of masks.

“Face shields are a good alternative to masks if wearing a mask is too uncomfortable. Make sure the face shield covers your entire face and extends past your chin,” Bogen said during a news briefing.

The White House Coronavirus Task Force also recommends masks although many of its members do not publicly wear them.

The mixed messages are among the reasons some are not wearing them, according to Gretchen Chapman, a professor of social and decision sciences at Carnegie Mellon University.

“I think the lack of consistent messaging is a real deficit,” Chapman said.

In early March as the pandemic was increasing in severity, officials initially discouraged people from buying and hoarding masks because the supply of medical-grade masks was limited. In the months since, the stance from officials has evolved.

That scientific understanding of covid-19 and how it spreads has evolved in a short time is understandable, Chapman said.

But the changing guidance is also a reason people are skeptical of professional recommendations.

“I don’t have any psychology magic to get people to change their behavior instantly,” Chapman said.

People are inherently reluctant to do something that doesn’t necessarily benefit themselves but is necessary for the common good, she said.

Wearing a mask can be uncomfortable and burdensome at times, and it doesn’t protect those wearing the mask from contracting covid-19.

“It protects all of the people around me,” Chapman said. “I have to put my self-interest aside and do what’s good for the group.”

People do what those around them are doing, Chapman said, so people who are around others who wear masks are more likely to do so themselves.

“If political leaders would give a consistent message about mask wearing and wear them themselves,” people’s behaviors might change, she said.

People may be more likely to abide by guidelines over time, Chapman said. Requirements for wearing seat belts in cars and public smoking bans were once thought to be overly intrusive but have become accepted by most in society.

But the coronavirus pandemic is different because officials need people to comply now.

“We can’t just say ‘Wait a few years,’ ” Chapman said. “We kind of need people to start wearing masks now.”