Surface Safety Tips/Covid-19

[rbarata]

First I want to say I have read how hard hit your country has been. I will be thinking about you and yours and pray stay safe.

Thank you! Hopefully we'll make it through! Now the most critical stage is starting so it's still too soon.

About the masks, here a comunitty also had the same idea, making masks of cotton and other similar fabrics. Although it's a commendable gesture, our national health organization said it's really not a good idea. The virus are so small that only specific fabrics are protective. Also, cotton becomes wet with respiration which makes things worse.
But most important, people wearing them think they are protected and start to do things they shouldn't do.

The best contribution for the community is to stay home and cut all the social and familiar contacts. Go out only if really necessary.

[early]

Originally Posted by rbarata

Thank you! Hopefully we'll make it through! Now the most critical stage is starting so it's still too soon.

About the masks, here a comunitty also had the same idea, making masks of cotton and other similar fabrics. Although it's a commendable gesture, our national health organization said it's really not a good idea. The virus are so small that only specific fabrics are protective. Also, cotton becomes wet with respiration which makes things worse.
But most important, people wearing them think they are protected and start to do things they shouldn't do.

The best contribution for the community is to stay home and cut all the social and familiar contacts. Go out only if really necessary.

The cotton mask also called surgical diy mask are not use in acute hospitals or with patients who have Covid 19/Our long term care centers and even assisted living that has dementia patients, go through dozens or even hundreds of mask per day, for they use gloves and mask when changing soiled beds or patients.

They are not for the general public to use, except it is now recommended when in NY in the subway, it would provide something, ie better than nothing.

Also, an emergendy nurse here in our largest city Albuquerque has made the cloth mask larger to fit over the respirator mask used in acute care, and changed frequently to address the moisture problem from respiration, They then do not have to throw away the the shorter supplied mask used in acute care, after every patient.

I have done my research, and do not feel like I am being a Pollyanna or the town crier. We are all in this together, and each have to do what we need to do to keep ourselves safe and if so inclined to do things at home to help the non acute health care settings. Our large Home Health care and Hospice are also running out of and have a backlog of orders to get any others. And the administrator of the nursing care center told me today they only have enough mask for three more days for 100 patients.