COVID-19: Rational use of non-public protective equipment (PPE)

The shelves are already empty, and the impact will probably be felt by those that need personal protective equipment probably the most. Fear and panic are causing residents to purchase and stockpile masks and other personal protective equipment, and individuals are paying top dollar for them.

At the tip of last week, the World Health Organization (WHO) issued an interim statement Guidance on the rational use of non-public protective equipment for coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).

Even the U.S. Surgeon General urges the general public to accomplish that stop buying masks. As doctors, we all know what awaits us if we haven’t got adequate personal protective equipment, but let’s present the facts in order that we will educate those around us. Here’s what we all know:

1. The coronavirus spreads through contact and droplets, not through the air.
2. To protect against airborne infection, dust masks, including N95 masks, are really useful.
3. Proper use of N95 masks requires fit testing.
4. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends the usage of N95 masks by healthcare staff
5. In addition to health care staff, the usage of appropriate face masks is crucial for individuals who directly take care of someone in close environments, including at home, and for individuals with compromised immunity.
6. As supplies run out, people directly caring for patients with infectious diseases – including Covid-19 – will themselves be susceptible to infection and should contribute to its spread.
7. Unnecessary wearing of masks may contribute to a false sense of security by causing lapses in other measures, e.g. Hand washingwhich has repeatedly proven to be probably the most effective approach to reducing the danger and spread of infectious diseases.

Remember – and remind others – of crucial measures to forestall the spread of infectious diseases:

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2018). Recommended guidelines for long-term and limited reuse of N95 filtering masks in healthcare settings. Downloaded from https://www.cdc.gov/niosh/topics/hcwcontrols/recommendedguidanceextuse.html

World Health ORganisation. (2020). Rational use of non-public protective equipment within the case of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Downloaded from
https://apps.who.int/iris/bitstream/handle/10665/331215/WHO-2019-nCov-IPCPPE_use-2020.1-eng.pdf