A face mask is an essential part of your uniform during the COVID-19 pandemic. It can help to keep yourself, your coworkers, and the public safe. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), it’s recommended that everyone over the age of two wear a face mask to help slow the spread of COVID-19. In certain states, wearing a face mask is a legal requirement in public areas.

However, since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, there has been a lot of debate about face coverings and the effectiveness of wearing a face mask. That said, to help bust these myths once and for all, we’ve compiled three of the most common misconceptions about face masks and the real truth about them.

1. Myth #1: Face masks aren’t effective. Face masks can help to reduce the risk of spreading COVID-19 when used alongside social distancing. When you wear a face mask, it helps to absorb the moisture particles expelled from your nose and mouth when you breathe, speak, and laugh. When worn by a person who is infected with COVID-19, it can help to mitigate the risk of spreading the virus.
2. Myth #2: Masks cause carbon dioxide buildup. While some masks are a little more difficult to breathe through than others, they cannot cause carbon dioxide buildup or poisoning. Doctors, nurses, and other medical personnel wear face masks daily while on the job and are able to breathe perfectly fine. Face coverings made from cotton are recommended for regular use by the public.
3. Myth #3: Face masks make it difficult to identify yourself. The Emblem Authority offers face coverings that come embroidered with custom police, fire department, and EMS patches to make it easy for public safety departments to identify themselves to members of the public while staying safe and reducing the risk of spreading COVID-19.

Are you looking for high-quality face masks with custom police patches or patches for fire departments? The Emblem Authority is your one-stop-shop for masks with custom patches, velcro patches, pins, and more. To learn more about our face coverings and custom patches for police, fire departments, EMS, and more, contact The Emblem Authority today.

One of the top ways to prevent the spread of COVID-19 is to maintain social distancing. However, for emergency services and departments serving the general public, it can be difficult to stay up to six feet apart from your coworkers and members of the public. Fortunately, public health experts agree that wearing a face covering is one of the best possible ways to reduce the risk of spreading COVID-19. To help protect your department and the people you’re serving, here’s what you need to know about the dos and don’ts of wearing face coverings.

DO: Wear Your Mask Properly

When you’re wearing your face covering, it’s essential that you’re wearing your face mask correctly or it won’t be effective. The face covering ought to cover both your nose and mouth. Your nose should never be poking out from the top, and the mask should never be down to your chin.

Wash your hands before you put your mask on and avoid touching your mask once it’s on. If you need to adjust your mask, make sure to touch the straps and not the cloth. When the time comes to take your mask off, remove it by the straps and not the cloth.

DON’T: Remove Your Mask to Identify Yourself

When you work in a public service position, you may need to identify yourself or your department to other people. However, removing your face covering could put you, the person you’re speaking to, and the rest of your department at risk. Keep your face covered with your face mask and instead use your identification card and badge to identify yourself.

The Emblem Authority offers face masks with custom patches sewn in so you don’t have to worry about not being able to identify yourself to others. What’s more, your custom police patches and fire department patches sewn onto your department’s face masks can also serve as a preventative measure for security. Because your custom patch is on the face mask, you don’t need to worry about someone impersonating a police officer or firefighter in your department while using a face covering as a disguise.

DO: Wash Your Mask Daily

Just like you wash the rest of your department’s uniforms every day, it’s important to wash your face masks every day. Wash your hands immediately after you remove your face mask even when you’re touching the straps. Consider keeping your department’s used face masks in a separate, sealed container until the time comes to wash them later in the day.

Once the face masks have been sufficiently washed and dried, store them in a clean, dry container. When you’re wearing a face mask from The Emblem Authority, you don’t need to worry about the water damaging your custom badge. Just wash the face mask with gentle detergent on gentle cycle only with cool water.

Face coverings are an essential part of your department’s new uniform. They’re important for keeping yourself, your coworkers, and the public safe. However, that doesn’t mean you need to worry about face masks clashing with the rest of your department’s uniform. The Emblem Authority’s face masks with custom department badges are exactly what you need. For more information on face masks with custom badges, contact The Emblem Authority today.

Being a policeman, firefighter, EMS, or a similar position of authority can be challenging on its own. With the seemingly countless rules, regulations, policies, and standards, it can be hard to know what the individuals in related job fields might be doing. Here are some of the most common forms of identification and symbolism you might see from those in authority or medical positions.

1. Badges

Badges are notoriously one of the oldest and well-known forms of identification, especially among police officers and those in law enforcement. Many badges are metallic in appearance and contain an engraved identification number unique to the individual wearing it. Badges can be very specific as well, as they might mean different things. Standardly, any badge coming from a county sheriff’s office will have a five, six, or seven-pointed star, while any badge coming from municipal police will have the shape of a shield.

2. Patches

Unlike many law enforcement officials whose primary form of identification is often their badge, many firefighters and EMS officials use patches as their go-to means of identification. In fire departments, patches are often extremely customized to the specific purposes, geography, and type of work or emergencies they may see. To keep it less confusing, firefighters will often have a database of all international and domestic patches, so they can easily identify the meanings and departments behind each patch.

EMS officials, on the other hand, are often known for the Star of Life symbol that has become recognizable on their patches. This means that many EMS providers can be seen wearing a patch with the star, as well as other organization-specific patches. Some EMS officials even wear a combination of badges and patches.

3. Pins

One of the most common types of pins you might encounter is a lapel pin, which is smaller in size and typically worn on the outside of clothing to show one’s affiliation with a certain group, cause, or organization. Pins can be worn by firefighters, law enforcement, and EMS providers alike, although they are arguably most associated with police officers. Usually, they will mean different things to each individual wearing them and can be very customizable.

The world of pins, patches, and badges can be very confusing when taking into account the different habits, customs, and traditions of different officials. Remember, every department and branch is different, and some exclusions may apply to these points. Hopefully, you will be better prepared for the next time you encounter a professional wearing something on their uniform. Maybe this article has even inspired you to buy some new patches or pins for your own uniform! Whatever the case, stay safe and keep protecting!

When you invest in the best quality fire department patches you can find, you do your crew a great service. You can choose a company that makes the types of patches you need, such as velcro patches that can be removed and placed on uniforms as needed, or you can buy the fire department patches that are affixed permanently to the uniforms of the service people you employ.

With over a million volunteer and career-style firefighters in the nation as of 2018, it’s easy to find a company to supply you with the custom types of patches you need. However, it’s important that you focus on the quality of the items you order. Here are the reasons why focusing on quality is key.

You Make Uniforms Look More Professional

When you have fire department patches designed professionally, you make your fire dept uniforms look even more professional than they already are. You want to focus on the stitch work and the vibrancy of all the patches you have put on your team, so everyone feels equal and appreciated, from your volunteer firefighters to those who do the work professionally as a career.

You Make Uniforms Last Longer

Investing in quality patches for your fire department personnel means you also invest in their uniforms as a whole. When you ensure the patches are of great quality by choosing a great fire department patch designer for your needs, you do even more to ensure that the uniforms last a long time. The more you invest in the fire department uniforms as a whole, the less money you have to spend on repairs or replacements as a preventative measure.

You Get More for Your Investment

Whether you buy your fire department patches in bulk or on an as-needed basis, you want to make sure you get great value for your investment. Quality matters in ensuring you have patches that won’t easily tear or fade, or bleed into the design of the rest of the uniform. Patches should be vibrant and easy to read, which will make them effective in identifying your firefighters in most situations.

You Get Reliable Patches That Work

The purpose of the fire department patches is to help make your firefighters feel like they are part of your unit and that they can be easily identified in the event of a dangerous scenario. Reliable patches that don’t fade or come off, even if they are made with Velcro backing, are beneficial to your fire department team.

Work with a company that makes patches for police and fire departments so you get the most out of your investment. A company with a great turnaround time and a reliable reputation is the one you want for all your patches, pins, badges, and more. Ask about bulk prices because they may be cheaper than you would pay for individual patches.

There’s no doubt that the coronavirus pandemic has drastically changed the way we all go about our daily lives. But because COVID-19 is such a new threat, we’re learning more about it as the pandemic rages on. Recommendations that were made back in March may not hold as true today for the simple fact that we’re discovering more about the virus — and how it spreads — as cases become more prevalent. While this can be confusing for many of us, it’s essential that we follow the guidelines laid out by leading health officials in order to protect ourselves, our loved ones, and members of our communities.

Regardless of the rules that your municipality may have in place, the use of face coverings and masks is a recommended practice for anyone who cannot maintain at least six feet of distance from others outside their home. However, you may be wondering about the actual effectiveness of face masks or have questions about whether it’s necessary for frontline workers to wear them in public. We hope this post will clear up any confusion you may have and illustrate the importance of this type of facial protection.

Do Face Masks Really Do Anything?

At the very start of the pandemic, the CDC actually made recommendations against the widespread use of face coverings and masks. However, those recommendations were amended fairly quickly once experts learned more about asymptomatic carriers and transmission. After it was discovered that infected persons could easily spread COVID-19 to others before they ever showed symptoms, national and international health organizations alike made it clear that face masks were one of several important preventative measures we can take to reduce the transmission of the novel coronavirus.

Of course, different kinds of masks offer different levels of protection. Surgical and N95 masks offer a greater level of protection than cloth masks, but masks made of cloth can be surprisingly effective in reducing the spread of disease. Recent evidence suggests that cloth masks can keep respiratory droplets and aerosols (which can easily spread the virus) from traveling to infect others. Ultimately, mask-wearing is most successful when used in tandem with other preventative measures — but it’s a step we can’t afford to overlook.

Why Should Frontline Workers Take These Extra Health Precautions?

Many of those working in public health and safety feel that it’s important for the public to see their entire faces. That may explain why law enforcement officers and other personnel nationwide have often been seen without face coverings. In other cases, frontline workers may not realize the extreme danger; they may even think that because they put their own safety on the line every day at work, they’re used to taking risks.

While it may be a valid concern that frontline workers need to make sure their faces can clearly be seen by the general public, it’s perhaps even more important to be concerned with your own health and the well-being of anyone with whom you come into contact. Those who work at the 17,985 police agencies and other public safety organizations nationwide are considered essential.

As a frontline worker, your job involves direct work with the public — and that puts you at a much higher risk for contracting COVID-19. We know that many people infected with COVID-19 won’t show symptoms for up to two weeks, while some may never show any symptoms at all. Because of that, you or someone you help could be carrying the novel coronavirus without realizing it. And since we know that face masks can make a significant difference in how COVID-19 spreads, wearing one is a way to protect yourself and others while you’re at work.

Where Can I Find Masks Specifically Designed For Frontline Workers?

Fortunately, many companies with the ability to do so have added a face mask to their product lines. We were already entrusted with making patches and pins for frontline workers — so it only makes sense that we can now make customized masks for agencies all across the country. For more information on our high-quality custom masks, please get in touch today.