UK HealthCare has ‘exceedingly low’ supply of protective gear needed for coronavirus
Officials at UK HealthCare asked employees to “please be frugal” with their use of protective gear as they work with patients who have novel coronavirus and other infectious diseases, citing an “exceedingly low” supply of the equipment.
The plea came in an email to staff Friday night announcing that UK Chandler Hospital is caring for the state’s first patient to test positive for COVID-19.
“As a result of both the flu and COVID-19, supplies of personal protective equipment are exceedingly low, and many items are on back order,” UK Executive Vice President for Medical Affairs Dr. Mark Newman said in the internal email.
In particular, the N95 protective masks worn by health care providers have been in notably short supply across the country in recent weeks, despite there being little evidence to suggest that masks, outside of a health care setting, actually protect against the virus.
In a statement issued Saturday afternoon, UK spokesman Jay Blanton said UK is prioritizing distribution of personal protection equipment and limiting the number of staff who enter isolation rooms.
“In addition, we will begin the process of requesting these supplies as necessary from the city and state emergency management departments,” Blanton said.
Gov. Andy Beshear confirmed late Friday afternoon that Kentucky had confirmed its first case of the viral respiratory illness, which has so far infected more than 100,000 people across the world, including more than 370 people in the United States.
The confirmed case is a woman from Harrison County who is in isolation at UK Chandler Hospital in Lexington, where health care staff have “taken every precaution and followed the appropriate Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) protocols to prevent exposure to other patients and caregivers,” Blanton said in a written statement Friday.
On Tuesday, before Kentucky had confirmed its first case of COVID-19, Dr. Derek Forster, UK Medical Director for Infection Prevention and Control, said the hospital system had already begun employing practices to “conserve” this equipment “from being used unnecessarily,” since manufacturers might not provide more in a timely manner.
“We have had to take them out of some areas where we don’t think we really need them,” he said of N95 masks. “They are on demand and available if needed, but they have to be requested,” he said.
At this point, with the current level of demand, “we have enough,” he said. But, “We have been told, though, that we will not be getting more if we need to order more ... so we have to put things in place right now to be able to conserve.”
If supply becomes too thin, UK will revert to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s plan for reusing masks. It’s a practice that isn’t recommended, since the effectiveness of the mask begins to degrade with too much use.
The CDC advises restricting use of the masks to health care providers who are at highest risk, as Dr. Forster said; and avoiding continuous wear, which is what causes the mask fibers to break down, by removing one’s mask whenever possible, such as between patient visits.
Reusing masks comes with its own risks, primarily contamination, which is why providers reusing masks must remain vigilante about hygiene, the CDC said.
Visit https://www.uky.edu/coronavirus/ for UK HealthCare updates, and http://kycovid19.ky.gov for statewide updates.
This story was originally published March 7, 2020 at 4:39 PM.
