Nurses told to use bandanas, scarves as ‘last resort’ if face masks run out, CDC says
As U.S. hospitals grapple with a shortage of face masks, new federal guidelines suggest health care workers such as nurses use bandanas or scarves as a “last resort.”
The suggestion appears in a new strategy guide for dealing with the shortage by the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Panic buying of surgical and respirator masks by the public may produce a shortage for doctors, nurses and other medical workers if hospitals become overwhelmed, the CDC says.
In that case, the guide suggests using scarves and bandanas to care for coronavirus patients only if no other face masks are available, and then in conjunction with face shields if possible.
The protection offered by such homemade masks remains unknown, the CDC says, so “caution should be exercised when considering this option.”
The virus, first reported in China, has swept across Asia and now has sparked new outbreaks in Europe and the United States.
Nearly 312,000 cases of the COVID-19 virus have been confirmed worldwide with more than 13,400 deaths as of March 22, according to Johns Hopkins University. The United States has more than 26,000 confirmed cases with more than 340 deaths.
The World Health Organization has declared the COVID-19 virus a global pandemic. In the United States, President Donald Trump has declared a national emergency.
The CDC guidance includes suggestions for face mask use during normal, contingency and crisis conditions. The advice about scarves and bandanas falls under the advice for a crisis when no face masks are available.
In a crisis, the CDC suggests using expired face masks, reusing face masks and prioritizing use of face masks for surgeries and other critical care.
In a crisis when face masks run out, the agency also suggests using face shields, restricting at-risk health care workers from caring for coronavirus patients, having workers who have already recovered from the virus care for such patients, and using isolation rooms.
In less-fraught conditions, the CDC suggests removing face masks from waiting rooms and extending use of face masks by health care workers.
The American Nurses Association called the new guidelines appropriate, Roll Call reported. But National Nurses United, the largest nurse’s union in the United States, blasted the change.
“If we are infected, everyone around us will be at grave risk of infection, especially those with compromised immune systems and other underlying health care conditions which is typical in hospital settings,” said union president Bonnie Castillo, Roll Call reported. “If we are not safe, no one is safe.”
This story was originally published March 19, 2020 at 10:31 AM with the headline "Nurses told to use bandanas, scarves as ‘last resort’ if face masks run out, CDC says."