Bahamas News
Bahamas: Who Should and Should Not Wear Face Masks, and Important Protocols for Those Wearing Masks
#NASSAU, The Bahamas — People all over the world are choosing to buy masks to protect themselves from COVID-19 to the point where many stores have empty shelves.
However, Deputy Chief Medical Officer, Dr. Delon Brennen explained during a recent interview that there are reasons why healthcare providers recommend that only sick people and healthcare workers should utilize masks.
“The reason masks are most useful for sick people is because for example if 10 of us enter a room, and there is one sick person in the room, you can use the one mask to put on the person who is sick; they would then cough into the mask and their respiratory droplets would not get onto anyone or surfaces or anything like that.
“Even if that one person who is sick does not have a mask on and you put nine masks on the other people in the room, yes that person when they cough, the masks will theoretically protect you from breathing in those particles immediately — but what it does not do is protect that environment.”
He explained, “So it does not go in your nose or mouth, but it goes on your hands, it goes on your phone, it goes on the handles to the door or whatever entry there is; it goes on other surfaces like tables and chairs. So when you go and you touch that surface, or you touch your phone, touch the handles, you then pick up the germs onto your hands and unfortunately if you touch your eyes, your nose, your mouth, you would then have the virus on your mucus membranes and have the potential of introducing it to yourself.”
Dr. Delon stated that the most important thing to do is to put a mask on a person who is coughing or sneezing and who has the respiratory symptoms to go along with it; and this is whether it is in regard to COVID-19, influenza, or the common cold: then the whole environment has been protected.
He also noted that healthcare workers need masks because they are going to take care of not just one person but multiple people with respiratory issues.
The Deputy CMO said for them wearing a mask means that they are protected from multiple people, and in general healthcare workers do a little bit better job of washing their hands and having good hand hygiene.
“So while someone may cough in the environment and they (healthcare providers) too might get it on their hands and surfaces, each time they go to see a patient or when they go and are done with seeing a patient, they do a lot better with cleansing their hands and so they are less likely to pass it on themselves.”
He also explained that there is a whole procedure behind putting on and taking off a mask.
Before putting on a mask a person should always wash their hands and then take the mask off from the back. “You never want to touch the front of the mask because, theoretically, as you are breathing, those particles that you were trying not to get into your nose have now been attached to the mask. If you touch the front of the mask, [the particles are] now on your hands. So you take it off from the back, you then make sure it drops directly into the bin — you wash before you take it off from the back, drop it directly in the bin, and then you wash your hands again.”
The Deputy CMO stressed that when healthcare providers suggest that people wear masks in public, it is for the patient specifically so that one of two things does not happen: the patient who has a respiratory illness does not pass it onto someone else; and the patient who has an immunocompromised condition and who is susceptible to infections does not get infected by something. “But again, it is a very rare scenario, there is a whole protocol around that as well, and you are not expected to wear it for long periods of time.
“You are only supposed to wear it for at the most two hours, and then you are supposed to get a new mask because as you might imagine the mask then becomes wet and all sorts of organisms and fomites that are out there can now be attracted to the mask.”
Dr. Brennen added, “So if you wear it for much longer, you have now defeated the whole purpose because you have attracted more to the mask than otherwise. Then it loses its ability to protect you the longer that goes on.”
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Next U.S. Ambassador? Walker Pledges Business-Driven Approach as U.S. Looks to Counter China in The Bahamas
Deandrea Hamilton | Editor
The Bahamas, September 16, 2025 – For the first time since 2011, the United States is on the cusp of sending an ambassador to The Bahamas — and the nominee, former football star turned entrepreneur Herschel Walker, is promising to bring his business instincts to the diplomatic table.
Speaking before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee last week, Walker underscored that his background in food-service companies and small business leadership has prepared him to think practically about investment. “I know how to run a business, how to create jobs, how to make payroll. Those lessons translate into building relationships and building trust,” Walker said.
Walker, who was nominated by President Trump in December 2024, faced the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on September 11. As of now, he has not yet been confirmed; his nomination remains under review, pending a committee vote before it can move to the full Senate. If approved, he would become the first U.S. ambassador to The Bahamas since 2011.
For years, U.S. officials have stressed security and counternarcotics cooperation with The Bahamas, including through “Operation Bahamas, Turks and Caicos.” But in areas like infrastructure, medical care, and long-term investment, Washington has often been absent.
Hospitals and clinics remain under-resourced, and hurricane recovery has been slow in many islands. Chinese state-backed firms, by contrast, have shown up with financing packages and construction deals — a presence that has raised alarms on Capitol Hill.
“Only 50 miles off our shore, The Bahamas is too important for us to ignore,” warned Senate Foreign Relations Committee leaders during Walker’s hearing. They called China’s inroads “strategic, not charitable,” suggesting Beijing’s long game is about ports, proximity, and political leverage.
Walker positioned himself as a nontraditional but pragmatic envoy. He argued that his business career, rooted in private sector success, equips him to champion American investment in The Bahamas.
He pledged to:
- Promote U.S. companies interested in medical and infrastructure projects.
- Support an environment that encourages American investors to see The Bahamas as more than just a beach destination.
- Highlight opportunities for partnerships that improve public services, healthcare, and resilience against hurricanes.
“I’ve built businesses. I know what it takes to attract investors and create opportunity. That is exactly what I intend to bring to our relationship with The Bahamas,” Walker said.
The Bahamas is not just a tourist paradise. It’s a frontline state in migration, drug interdiction, and hurricane response. More than six
million U.S. visitors travel there annually, making stability and safety a U.S. domestic concern as much as a foreign policy one.
And yet, with the ambassador post vacant for 14 years, the U.S. has often looked detached — opening space for China’s ambitious Belt and Road agenda. The fear is that infrastructure deals signed today could give Beijing leverage in the region tomorrow. Walker’s confirmation would symbolize a course correction, signaling Washington’s intent to re-engage not only in security but in the economic future of The Bahamas. Not everyone is convinced Herschel Walker is the right man for the job. His nomination revived controversies from his 2022 Senate run, including past allegations, public gaffes, and doubts about whether he has the diplomatic polish the post demands. Some senators and analysts questioned whether celebrity and business experience were enough for a role requiring nuance in foreign policy and geopolitics.
Critics argued that The Bahamas, sitting just 50 miles from Florida and facing intense Chinese interest, deserves a seasoned diplomat rather than a political ally.
Walker confronted those doubts head-on. “People have underestimated me all my life — in academics, athletics, and business,” he told the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. “And I have always proven them wrong, through discipline, determination, and by outworking everyone.”
He admitted he had never served as an ambassador but countered that his career prepared him in other ways: building businesses, managing payrolls, and connecting with people from all walks of life. He framed his business background as a strength, promising to use it to encourage U.S. investment in healthcare, infrastructure, and hurricane resilience projects in The Bahamas.
Rather than sparring with critics, Walker leaned on confidence and persistence: “I know how to build trust and find common ground. That’s what this relationship needs.”
If confirmed, Walker would have to balance his role as diplomat with expectations of being a commercial cheerleader for U.S. firms. His emphasis on entrepreneurship suggests a willingness to push U.S. businesses toward opportunities in healthcare, ports, and post-storm reconstruction — areas where Bahamians say they need the most support.
For Bahamian officials, the question will be whether Washington is prepared to back words with financing. U.S. private sector dollars, paired with aid and development partnerships, could help shift the tide against Chinese influence.
For Walker, the test will be whether his business acumen can translate into diplomatic wins — giving Bahamians alternatives to Beijing, while deepening the U.S. role in the Caribbean.
Analysis: If Walker delivers, this appointment could mark a turning point: a U.S. strategy that recognizes that in the Caribbean, investment is diplomacy.
