MASK-wearing is no longer mandatory in Basingstoke, Andover and Winchester hospitals after guidance has been updated.

Hampshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, which runs the three hospitals, announced on May 9 that its guidance on mask-wearing was updated following a review of infection control processes.

It said: “As we regularly review our infection control processes, with the aim to keep our community and staff safe and provide the best care possible, we have this week taken the decision to update our mask-wearing guidance.

“As of Tuesday 9 May, mask-wearing and social distancing will no longer be mandatory in our hospitals. The decision to wear a surgical facemask will be made on an individual case basis, in line with our general transmission-based precautions. However, universal mask-wearing will become personal preference.”

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The trust said that hand sanitiser and surgical facemasks will still remain available at each of its three sites.

The updated guidance comes after the World Health Organisation (WHO) announced last week that Covid is no longer a global health emergency.

WHO director general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said: “It’s with great hope that I declare Covid-19 over as a global health emergency.”

However, he added that this “does not mean Covid-19 is over as a global health threat”, warning that the risk of new variants still remained.