Barriers to Mask Wearing for Influenza-like Illnesses Among Urban Hispanic Households

Objectives: To identify barriers to mask wearing and to examine the factors associated with the willingness to wear masks among households.

Design And Sample: We used data sources from a study assessing the impact of 3 nonpharmaceutical interventions on the rates of influenza: exit interviews; home visits with a subset of the mask group; and a focus group.

Measures: Risk perception score, univariate analysis, and logistic regression were conducted to identify the characteristics and predictors of mask use. Thematic barriers to mask wearing were identified from qualitative data obtained at home visits and focus group.

Results: Respondents from the mask group, when compared with the nonmask group, demonstrated higher risk perception scores concerning influenza (maximum score: 60, means: 37.6 and 30.2, p<.001) and increased perception of effectiveness of mask wearing (maximum score: 10, means: 7.8 and 7.3, p=.043). There was no significant association between demographic, attitudinal, or knowledge variables and adherence to wearing masks. Thematic barriers were identified such as social acceptability of mask use, comfort and fit, and perception of the risk/need for masks.

Conclusions: Face masks may not be an effective intervention for seasonal or pandemic influenza unless the risk perception of influenza is high. Dissemination of culturally appropriate mask use information by health authorities and providers must be emphasized when educating the public.