Health workers not social distancing outside of work?

[WorriedMummy2020]

I'm curious because I am seeing quite a lot of people I know to be health workers (nurses mainly) whether at the school gates every day or at the kids' activities that are still happening who are not social distancing at all. I know they're health workers but the ones not distancing while wearing scrubs are obvious to anyone. Friends and acquaintances stood right next to each other with no distancing at all, chatting, laughing like normal, no masks worn, for a good few minutes at least. They don't work on the same ward or unit btw.

Has anyone else experienced this? I find it very bizarre and quite irresponsible. Should they not be setting a good example? Equally, I see doctors wearing face masks on the school run, so it's by no means all health workers. But, even so....

@OpenlyGayExOlympicFencer

I was just thinking that about care workers actually. Lots of them wear scrubs.

If only! Many nurses are not provided with scrubs. They have a traditional uniform and have to take it back home to wash in their home washing machine, no matter what horrible stuff is on it. In 'normal times' this stuff will be a lot of germs, often bodily fluids. It is totally unhygienic and unpleasant. In the first wave, I think scrubs were provided and washed. This has stopped now, even with the second wave clearly started.

I can't believe you feel entitled to judge fellow parents like this, let alone nursing staff who've seen more shit, literally and metaphorically, than you can even imagine. Shame on you OP.

addictedtotheflats

Because tbh its all a load of crap. I cant see my family but I can take my child to a playgroup indoors with 15 other kids. I can send my Son to nursery to mix with 30+ other kids but cant have anyone in my house.

Because the evidence (so far) shows kids tend not to be spreaders and play and education is essential for their development. track and trace evidence shows adults mixing indoors is a cause of outbreaks.

It is not the healthcare professionals fault they can't change if they don't have changing rooms or lockers.

Their working conditions are inadequate. Their scrubs provision is inadequate.

It isn't about setting an example - that is not their responsibility any more than any of the other professionals that the senior nurse a few posts above mentioned. Plenty of workers encounter coronavirus in their work, not just healthcare professionals. It is wrong to single out one group and leads to the horrible situation a pp mentioned where their dd had been ostracized.

Yeah by care workers I mean non-clinicians. Afaik it isn't normal practice for them to be forbidden from wearing their scrubs outside work either, whereas obv its common for doctors and nurses.

Additionally, I'm surprised and bemused to read that some people seem to require healthcare workers doing errands to set them an example. If that's you, I'm not sure it's the clinicians falling below the standard you feel entitled to that are the issue.

I am old enough to remember when uniforms were washed by the hospital. For me and many others, taking away the hospital laundry meant that everyone suddenly looked less “tidy” as they were all ironed and starched.

The hospital in Wales most likely didn't close because of the healthcare professionals. It likely closed because the hospital management failed to protect staff and patients from infection, which is their legal obligation as employers.
This obligation should cover adequate PPE, proper testing of patients (and ideally staff, but the government never followed up on that promise), proper infection control, proper decontamination of infected areas.
The fact that 86 people have tested positive and some have died points to a failure of infection control and failure to protect staff and patients.

I don’t wear scrubs outside work, and I think you are right, HCW should not be in clothes they wear in work/identifiable for the impression it gives. If I am lifting kids - I stay in car beeping horn and wave .
I don’t speak to other parents or people AT ALL now as they all stand too close to me! I keep stepping back. I imagine lots think I’m a bit “unclean” as I am in healthcare also so I avoid causing them anxiety. I already don’t have a “social network” (ie nearly no friends in area) so it isn’t helping- maybe next year.

@Msmcc1212 I thought children were the asymptomatic "super spreaders"