Clinton Valley Church

1/ Surgeons wear masks so that bodily fluids — which always have bacteria even if a surgeon is asymptomatic — won’t go into a patient’s open wound. 

NOT to stop the viral aerosols that smoke though and around the masks, and are the primary mode of viral transmission.

2/ Surgeons who are showing respiratory symptoms likely postpone surgery if the patient is infirm, because a face mask won’t slow viral transmission.

3/ Surgeons self-select. Folks finding face masks uncomfortable steer themselves toward other careers.

4/ Surgeons wearing masks voluntarily does not justify mandating an entire population wear masks involuntarily.

5/ Surgeons don’t move around much. They’re in one spot. They’re consequently at little or no raised risk from falls. Masks prevent wearers from seeing down, a view that includes their own bodies and floor in the periphery. Accordingly, face masks raise the risk of physical injury from falls etc.

6/ Also because surgeons aren’t moving, they’re not breathing heavily. Masks become unsafe when exercising.

7/ Surgeons wear masks temporarily, not all day.

8/ Surgeons also wear professional anti-fog goggles so that their breath doesn’t bother their eyes or fog up their prescription glasses. Should everyone have to as well?

9/ A surgeon’s emotional expressions on the face are of minimal importance compared to most other jobs, especially in the service industry.


Dr. Mark Changizi - theoretical cognitive scientist.