Health Care staff responded to CDC’s advice on N95 masks. Said, it would be unsafe for the staff and patients if we loosen the masks in the hospitals.
Centers for Disease Control (CDC) passed a draft earlier in June. Stating the N95 masks are no different than regular and loose surgical masks. Further, doctors and staff should use regular masks while operating patients infected with “common, endemic” viruses.
The medical staff opposed the advice saying they have safety concerns about protection against viruses like Coronavirus. It would not keep the staff and patients safe from airborne diseases.
Medical practitioners responded to CDC’s Draft
After CDC’s expression, Gwendolyn Hill (Intern, Cedars-Sinai medical center, Los Angeles) said, “health care facilities are where some of the most vulnerable people in our population have to frequently go or stay.” Added, N95 masks with proper ventilations can “help ensure that people are not leaving sicker than they come.”
Alexander Kallen, (Chief, Prevention and response Branch, CDC) responded, “we are happy to receive feedback. It is our goal to develop a guideline that is protective of patients, visitors and health workers.”
A Physician and Pathologist, Kaitlin Sundling shared, “It’s shocking to suggest that we need more studies to know whether N95 respirators are effective against an airborne pathogen.” While “the science of N95 is well-established and based on physical properties, engineered filtered materials and scientific understanding of how airborne transmission works.”
CDC’s suggestion to use replace N95 masks with regular masks has shocked the medical experts and staff. Those which easily spread over a short distance and attack people having poor immunity quickly.
For the time-being, healthcare workers are hoping the committee would reevaluate their draft and consider more research. “If they end up codifying these standards of care, it will have a disastrous impact on patient safety and impact our ability to respond to future health crisis.” Rocelyn de Leon-Minch, Hygienist at National Nurses United said.
