'Mask up': Healthcare workers hope new campaign will encourage people to wear masks

CHICAGO - Area hospitals are banding together to get out an urgent message: Masks save lives.
 
Healthcare workers are hoping a new campaign will wake people up.

“It is not Republican or Democratic to do things to wanna protect your neighbor,” said Dr. Emily Landon from the University of Chicago Medicine.

Doctors and nurses are asking folks to put politics aside and simply wear a mask.

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The University of Chicago Medicine partners with 100 health systems nationwide and are now concerned that Illinois hospitals will soon be overwhelmed.

“We’re getting really close to becoming too full in Chicago,” said Dr. Landon.

With the majority of COVID-19 cases throughout the U.S. mostly impacting minority ethnic groups, African-American hospital workers say wearing a mask is a no brainer.  
 
“We get comfortable, we take them off around people we trust, a lot of people asymptomatic, and that’s the issue. We don’t know who has it, who is sick and who is not,” said Emergency Room Technician Kevena Zachery.

The campaign entitled “Mask Up” will feature several public service messages shared on multiple media platforms.

Dr. Landon says if COVID-19 trends don’t reverse, we’ll soon see elective procedures canceled.  

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“Elective procedures doesn’t just mean things like knee replacements and nose jobs. It’s anything scheduled in advance,” said Dr. Landon.

Dr. Landon also advises that masks be properly worn, making sure that your nose and mouth remain covered.