By Analou De Vera A health expert said those who have flu-like symptoms should use surgical masks to prevent them from spreading viruses to other people. "Kahit wala pong nCoV (novel coronavirus)...parang awa nyo na, kung may sakit po kayo, mag mask po kayo. Ang kailangan gamitin ay yung surgical mask and laging blue side out ," said Dr. Edsel Salvana, director of University of the Philippines Manila's Institute of Molecular Biology. Salvana said that the individual's nose and mouth should be covered by the surgical mask. He reminded the public to observe proper disposal of surgical masks, avoid touching its front part, and to wash their hands after disposing of the mask. Salvana also noted that cloth masks will not help in protecting its users from the 2019 novel coronavirus acute respiratory disease (2019-nCoV ARD). "Yung cloth mask po hindi po sya gumagana kasi wala po syang filter. So akala nyo po protektado kayo hindi pala ," he said. The health expert also said that n95 masks should be reserved for health workers who are dealing with patients. "Yung n95 mask po, ang gumagamit lang po nyan doctor, dahil kailangan po iyan i-fit ng maayos. Kapag binili nyo lahat ng n95 sa merkado, wala nang magagamit ang mga doktor na tumitingin ng pasyente ," said Salvana.