Troy Shantz
Bluewater Health is considering reusing a certain type of facemask as the COVID-19 outbreak drains supplies of protective gear for staff.
“Aside from keeping patients safe, I would say PPE (personal protective equipment) is the number one issue that we’re dealing with,” said hospital communications chief Julia Oosterman.
In London, nine nurses who administer chemotherapy walked off the job this week after they weren’t provided with masks.
Bluewater Health set aside “several thousand” masks for its pandemic stockpile, as well as gloves and other PPE, Oosterman said.
But the supply of masks is dwindling.
On Tuesday, the hospital was treating 17 patients with the virus, as well as 16 additional patients presumed infected and awaiting test results.
“If we go the way every other hospital is going, someday we may not be OK,” Oosterman said.
A memorandum issued to staff on Sunday asked front-line workers to write their first and last names on used N95 masks, and deposit them in paper bags for collection and possible decontamination.
Oosterman said a process developed by Duke University using vaporized hydrogen peroxide is being investigated for potential use at the hospital.
According to researchers, the process is safe, but it has not been widely used.
“You can use it up to 50 times,” said Oosterman, referencing the study. “Going from a mask which you can use once to going to a mask you can use 50 times is quite significant.”
If the backup plan is initiated it could save 1,400 masks a week, she said.
“We’re just trying to hedge our bets.”
N95 masks are the standard for COVID-19 protection. They shield health-care workers from airborne contaminants during medical procedures like intubation – an intervention used when very sick patients can no longer breathe on their own.
Regular surgical masks don’t offer the same level of protection as N95s, Oosterman said.
“Keep in mind this paper bag preservation thing is only one of about six or seven strategies we’re doing,” she said, noting some local companies have donated masks used in industry.
Medical gowns and gloves are still in good supply, and a local company has started making face shields, she added.