Why are the police not wearing PPE or staying 2 m apart?

[pontypridd]

We saved a lost child today - out on our walk. The police came to help and none of them were wearing PPE. None of them kept even 1 m apart from each other, us or the lost child.

This is the 5/6th time we've personally encountered the police during this lockdown. Every time - there's a collection of them with no PPE. And they don't social distance from us, other members of public or from each other.

Why are the police not complaining about the lack of PPE and social distancing for themselves at work - as teachers and the NHS staff are?

Or do they know something that the rest of us don't?

Enabling laws. They possibly already have a vaccine?

Did you not ask them?

They have to travel together in the car anyway! Though police are actually meant to social distance when patrolling by foot even before all this, due to the risk of being attacked (or that might be just here in NI!)

They do have some PPE but don't need it for the situation you describe.

Probably the same reason PPE was not needed in care homes in March.

How can they already have a vaccine?

The police?

PPE is for people in close contact with people who have the virus, or are strongly suspected to have it. It's not needed when working with the general public. Teachers don't understand this. Checkout workers in supermarkets have screens because they're coming into contact with hundreds of people every day.

Exactly! Also, it really is not necessary outdoors!

We don’t have vaccine. And we work together so the 2 meters doesn’t help us although I try to stay two metres from the public, it’s not always possible though obviously.

PPE is for people in close contact with people who have the virus

But no-one knows who has they virus.

It's not needed when working with the general public

Why? Members of the general public do have Covid 19. People carry the virus asymptomatically.

I work in a mental health unit. We don't routinely use PPE either. ONLY if someone is symptomatic. We just work as normal otherwise and unfortunately we just really can't keep 2 metres apart either.
Teachers I just don't think understand what PPE is for and are being hyped up by the media and their unions.

Nickynacky - I'm assuming, from your answer, that you are a policeman or woman.

I'm curious as to why police are not dropping like flies - in the same way that NHS and care workers have been.

There's been no mention of this anywhere - but police must be vulnerable.

Do you work with the same colleagues every day? Surely there's change overs with different shifts?

I think you're missing the point that normal joe public don't generally need PPE the only reason you would need it is if you were going to be in contact with definite cases. Yes you never know who has it but this goes for anyone that is walking or shopping etc. PPE would be wasted on police who aren't necessarily directly coming into contact. I'm sure if they got a call and they knew there was a chance of actual Covid contact they would use appropriate PPE as they do currently with gloves for blood etc

Police officer who is female.

Not sure why we aren’t dropping like flies. Very few of us have been affected.

No, I don’t work with the same person every day. I can work with 2/3 closely per shift easily. And work with many more.

How can they already have a vaccine?

That's enough grown up time for you today

Looney That’s correct, if officers are sent to an incident with a suggestion of Covid they will gown up. And we have a specialist Covid team although they are based a distance away. They also deal with deaths where Covid may be involved and the police are required to attend.

There are hordes and great swathes of people working side by side in British industry, without PPE.

It’s being managed with staggered shifts, 2m distancing where possible, strict isolation policies and extremely good hygiene practices.

The chance of catching it in the open air is small, police travel in cars together so no point in distancing in the park

I work in a mental health unit. We don't routinely use PPE either. ONLY if someone is symptomatic.

^^Same in care homes: masks used only if symptomatic, tested positive without symptoms, or returned from hospital.

I feel that PPE should be worn in all professions where social distancing cannot be performed: care work, police work, etc, as is widely practised in hospitals now.

Certainly when I was last at work (about ten days ago) there had been no guidance about wearing masks apart from the fitted masks we have for Covid incidents.

I work in an SEN school which is for children residing in care homes and we have never closed and all the children are in. Between the school and the care homes there are a fair few members of staff. We can't practise social distancing due to the nature of the children and we most certainly don't use PPE. We have had no cases of Covid-19

In my line of work I am in contact with the police often ranges from PCSO/ PC's to DCI's and specialist teams. I don't wear PPE for my work and I'm in the community.

I try and keep 2m apart from service users and clients but it's not always possible. And when you are party to assisting the police huddled in police vans or the CCTv of a high rise building where the room is so small you can't swing a cat you aren't adhering to the 2m rule.

Me and my team have also had no abcense for suspected covid.

The police aren’t dealing with Covid patients directly in the same way nurses are. I feel for them. They must feel very vulnerable, but the infection rates will be lower due to the nature of the job.

Teachers don’t use PPE either. I think it’s partly due to cost and partly because it could act as a barrier to doing our job. It doesn’t particularly bother me because they’re not hugely effective anyway (unlike the screens supermarket workers have, which obviously wouldn’t work for police or teachers!). It would only make sense if every member of the public the police deal with (or child teachers deal with) also had PPE and used it correctly and that’s obviously not going to be the case!

This is what everyone has been trying to say when all the teachers come on complaining about using to return. Millions of workers have still been working, no PPE and aren’t threatening to not work. It genuinely is only teachers and I don’t know why. Both Dh and I are in similar jobs and we don’t get it.

It's not needed when working with the general public. Teachers don't understand this. I just read that comment properly - for the record teachers aren’t wearing PPE either! It’s just not practical in our job. We are doing lots of hand washing etc and are obviously only working with a small group of children at the moment. It’ll be do-able but more tricky when the next lot start school.