| Hospital unable to replenish flu masks |
By: JIM HAMMERAND, Staff Writer
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Posted: Saturday, November 14, 2009 2:43 am
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NORTHFIELD — A global shortage of masks that block the new H1N1 flu virus has left the Northfield Hospital unable to replenish its stock.
The shortage means employees in contact with flu patients may need to reuse the masks, which lose effectiveness after repeated wearings, and that the hospital may in coming months draw from a state cache reserved for when the hospital’s supply is exhausted, Safety and EMS Director Andy Yurek said.
The hospital has been ordering more masks than usually needed for the past 18 months, he said. But suppliers are now telling the hospital that orders placed after August won’t be delivered until the first quarter of 2010 at the earliest.
The surgical, N95 masks block flu particles and form an air-tight seal around the wearer’s face. Until now, manufacturers have recommended disposal after one use, but loosened those recommendations as supplies evaporated. Because H1N1 is a new strain, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is recommending the mask for all healthcare workers within six feet of patients who have or are suspected to have H1N1.
Yurek declined to say how many masks the hospital has in stock, but did say about 240 are used and disposed of per week. He said he hoped the current supply would last until February, at which time the hospital could use the masks supplied by the state if new masks are still unavailable.
The CDC reported last week that pandemics like this one have historically come in three or more waves, Yurek said.
“We’re hoping that wave No. 2 is passing through Minnesota now,” he said. “We’re on the downside of the wave, hopefully.”
The Minnesota Department of Health this week confirmed six more H1N1-related deaths through Nov. 7, bringing the state total to 21. In that week, schools reported 40 flu outbreaks, just a third as many outbreaks as was reported in the prior week. Clinic visits and hospitalizations were also down, indicating that the most recent wave of infection may be waning.
Hospital employees — from receptionists to nurses, doctors, lab workers and X-ray technicians — in contact with patients with coughs or influenza-like illnesses are required to wear the masks.
“Our numbers of use could be very high per patient,” Yurek said.
If mask stocks drop to “extremely low” levels, the hospital could approve an extended use policy. Under such circumstances, the masks could be used repeatedly as long as they’re not contaminated with fluids, used in procedures that put high levels or particulates in the air, soiled or show wear, including a deteriorated fit to the face.
The hospital’s H1N1 vaccine has been in good supply, Yurek said, and no one within the population deemed particularly vulnerable to the flu has been turned away. The hospital and clinic system has given more than 5,200 doses in Northfield, Lonsdale, Farmington and Lakeville.
DO THEY WORK?
The CDC now recommends healthcare workers in contact with H1N1 patients wear N95 respirators. Unlike normal surgical masks that keep splashes and splatters out of a wearer’s mouth and nose, the N95 masks seal to the face to keep airborne particles from being inhaled. In prevention and control guidelines updated on Nov. 6, the Minnesota Department of Health said there’s not enough data to tell whether N95 respirators offer any more protection than regular masks:
“MDH recognizes that there is a lack of extensive data regarding respiratory protection for influenza, particularly the use of respirators for routine patient care (this does not include aerosol-generating procedures). A recently published randomized trial found no significant difference in the incidence of laboratory-confirmed influenza among nurses using N95 respirators versus those using surgical masks. MDH supports the need for further research regarding influenza transmission and will continue to monitor the infection prevention and control literature and epidemiology of the virus through statewide surveillance projects,” the document reads, in part.
— Jim Hammerand covers the city. He can be reached at jhammerand@northfieldnews.com or 645-1114. |
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