- On May 8, a few days before the start of the "deconfinement" school year, a Facebook post from the CGT Educ'action des Yvelines (78) went viral.
- He denounced the quality of the masks received by the teaching staff, photo of a batch in support, on which one can read "does not protect from viral or infectious contaminations".
- Contacted by 20 Minutes , the rectorate of the Academy of Versailles confirms the distribution of these masks, in accordance with the health protocol recommended for teachers, while specifying that they replaced the masks concerned to allay the teachers' concerns.
Are the masks distributed to teachers ensuring the resumption of lessons in certain academies really effective in the face of the spread of the coronavirus?
A Facebook post posted online by the CGT Educ'action des Yvelines (78), on May 8, a few days before this singular start to deconfinement, argues that not: “The masks arrived in the schools of Yvelines ... A piece of non-woven 1st price, "which does not protect from viral or infectious contaminations", but allows to send our colleagues to the front line of this "health war". Masks not in accordance with standard EN14683 ”.
As we can see in the photo accompanying this message shared almost 10,000 times, this batch of 50 "3 ply blue hygiene masks" clearly includes the words "this product does not protect against viral or infectious contamination" and "not tested to standard EN14683 ”.
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Contacted by 20 Minutes, the CGT Educ'action des Yvelines did not respond to our requests before the article appeared. The rectorate of the Versailles Academy confirms, however, that "the masks distributed in the Yvelines are type 1 general public masks", in accordance with the "recommendations of the health authorities" relating to teachers.
"They are to be distinguished from the FFP2 type masks (reserved for caregivers) which, alone, have the mention" this product protects from viral and infectious contaminations "", continues the rectorate.
As the government recalled in a list of questions and answers published at the end of March, "masks for medical use" are a "medical device meeting the standard NF EN14683, which, by avoiding the projection of droplets emitted by the wearer of the mask, limits contamination of the outside environment and other people ”. They are therefore to be distinguished from respiratory protection masks (FFP2), which in turn protect the wearer of the mask against the inhalation of droplets.
In addition, a note of recommendation on the use of the mask emanating from the ministry for Health, points out that the High council of Public health (HCSP) recommends well "the wearing of a mask general public [who must have a level of breathability allowing them to be worn for 4 hours] by teachers and supervisors during school hours and when traveling or grouping together ”.
"We preferred to replace the masks concerned"
Asked by 20 Minutes about the mention "not tested to standard EN14683" - which guarantees, according to Afnor, the effectiveness of its bacterial filtration beyond 95% -, clearly visible on the photo of the batch of masks broadcast on Facebook, the rectorate of the academy of Versailles assures 20 M inutes to have made sure that "all the masks which are provided to the teachers have a filtration higher than 90%". While acknowledging that "the mention" this product does not protect from viral or infectious contaminations "on the masks could have aroused reactions from [his] teachers".
"We preferred to replace the masks concerned, so that the re-entry takes place in the most serene way possible for our personnel, even though we know that they have been tested and provide filtration at more than 90%", concludes the rectorate.
On May 9, a similar controversy stirred the teachers of Haute-Loire at the reception of the same batch of masks, as our colleagues in "Zoom from here" reported. This had led the academy inspector to recall that the FFP2 masks remained well reserved for nursing staff.
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- Coronavirus
- Deconfinement
- Society
- Fake Off
- Education
- Primary school