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Surgical Masks: A Tale of Two Paradigms
We are hearing more discussion about encouraging mask-wearing in the US. What is changing? According to this article and what I’m hearing from my hospital, it’s actually a shift in paradigm.
A face mask will not protect you from being exposed to COVID-19. It will generally cover your nose/mouth and prevent accidentally touching them, but it is not protective from the virus itself. That requires a particulate respirator, like an N95.* However, particulate respirators can be dangerous for people with poor breathing conditions. We saw how our garbage media have run with the fish tank anti-parasite chemical story. All it would take is one lady stuffing an N95 on her asthmatic husband, and media would be portraying Trump as personally choking the guy to death like Darth Vader. Also, people need to shave to use a normal respirator. The media would tun that into Trump wanting to kill orthodox rabbis and Muslim men.
Realistically, we apply PPE as the last resort in controlling a hazard, and only have people who need the PPE wear it. Right now, people are working out how to reuse disposable N95 masks, in addition to using one mask for the whole shift. The people with the highest risk in hospitals and clinics need the N95s desperately. In a war, it is challenging enough to get ammo for all of the soldiers on the front line, without getting everyone at home a full stock of ammo as well. That’s why you have not heard about masks – the ones available in mass quantities or craftable at home are do not protect the individual, while the N95s need to be kept for front-line people.
So why are they reconsidering masks for everyone? Because the masks protect other people from you. In essence, this approach looks at all people as potential carriers of the virus. A mask thick enough to stop droplets can be made at home without too much trouble, and there is no problem with reusing the mask as the only germs it has on it are ones you already have. This community-focused paradigm is more common in Asia, and I expect it to be a harder sell over here. Think of it as a portable quarantine.
The reason I call this a paradigm shift is that the facts I mentioned above have not changed. The change was in how we view and interpret them. When I saw the announcement from Infection Control that mentioned replacing self-quarantine with masks for people without symptoms, you could imagine a light-bulb popping up over my head.
So, Wear a Mask, Protect America … from yourself.
* Respirator classification notes: The letter determines how the respirator handles oil. No oil, oil-Resistant, or oil-Proof. The number refers to the mask’s efficiency at capturing particles. 95%, 99%, or 99.97%. P100 is normally sold as cartridges for a reusable respirator, like for asbestos/lead paint removal.
Published in Healthcare
I know! The word droplet is legit disgusting.
And thanks for your reply.
If you think “Droplet” is a gross medical word, never pick up a Stedmans Medical Dictionary.
There are reasons my doctorate involved a lot of Augustine books and zero medical dictionaries.
Thanks, Doc. Appreciate the information!!
The only issue is ozone and the elastic. UVC tends to damage the elastic before the actual mask material, especially rubber. If you replace the elastic, you still reuse the mask.
I see that I can’t buy another respirator like this one that I bought back in mid-January for use while putting stain and polyurethane on wood. They are now being sold only to hospitals and COVID-19 workers.
It like it a lot. It fits well. If I would trim off my short beard, maybe it would fit even tighter. But when working with stain, etc. I’m not able to smell anything. Then when I climb out of the attic where I do this work and take the mask off, I’m really hit with the odor. So it isn’t just a matter of having gotten desensitized to the odor.
But last week I used it while cutting some melamine particle board. I have a brand new saw blade made just for that purpose, but the process seemed to generate some smoke. I could smell it while wearing the mask. I wouldn’t expect those smoke particles to be smaller than whatever is in the air from the stain or polyurethane, but I don’t know that for a fact. I am somewhat puzzled by it. I’m planning to use it again tomorrow for another round of staining.
I don’t know if I would wear it when going out in public, but I won’t rule it out.
Check the seal on the mask – when I wore a respirator, I had to adjust the mask most times I used it
Cover the exhalation valve – where air comes out when you wear it – and breathe out. It should puff up and pull away from your face. If it does not, you have a leak.
Yeah, you will eventually ruin the elastic. but that’s easily replaced.
To those who have a 3d printer a university has published the files to 3d print your own masks….