PPE News and Research

RSS

Analysis of social media messages reveals struggles of care home staff during COVID-19 first wave

Analysis of social media messages between care home staff on the coronavirus front line reveal their growing concerns over how to manage in the face of the virus. Thousands of Whatsapp messages between 250 care home workers during the first coronavirus wave show workers were often asking questions which went unanswered due to a lack of proper guidance.

1 Dec 2020

HIV-related health services in Thailand during COVID-19 pandemic

Thailand's key population-led health services (KPLHS) are a hallmark of the success of the country's HIV response.

30 Nov 2020

FDA issues guidance on use of dry heat to support reuse of certain respirators

Today, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration issued guidance on the use of dry heat to help support the single-user reuse of certain particulate filtering facepiece respirators (FFRs), such as N95 respirators, by health care personnel when there is a limited supply of respirators during the COVID-19 public health emergency.

25 Nov 2020

New CDC report describes COVID-19 in NYC in early spring

The Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), in its Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR), has published an update on the outbreak in New York City. The report is titled, "COVID-19 Outbreak — New York City, February 29–June 1, 2020".

23 Nov 2020

KHN’s ‘What the Health?’: Transition troubles mount as COVID spreads

President-elect Joe Biden is still being blocked from launching his official transition while President Donald Trump contests the outcome of the election. That could be particularly dangerous for public health as COVID-19 spreads around the country at an alarming rate.

20 Nov 2020

These front-line workers could have retired. They risked their lives instead.

Sonia Brown’s husband died on June 10. Two weeks later, the 65-year-old registered nurse was back at work. Her husband's medical bills and a car payment loomed over her head.

20 Nov 2020

People with learning disabilities are more likely to die from coronavirus

A newly-published Public Health England report which shows people with learning disabilities are 6.3 times more likely to die from coronavirus than the rest of the population shows urgent action is required.

19 Nov 2020

SARS-CoV-2 deactivation on surfaces in 30 seconds with a copper paste

In a recent bioRxiv preprint paper, a team of researchers shows the possibility of using copper, in a new conformation, for effectively killing microbes immediately.

18 Nov 2020

Anger after North Dakota Governor asks COVID-positive health staff to stay on job

Nurse Leslie McKamey has gotten used to the 16-hour shifts, to skipping lunch, to the nightly ritual of throwing all her clothes in the laundry and showering as soon as she walks through the door to avoid potentially infecting her children.

18 Nov 2020

Strategizing pediatric healthcare preparedness for the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic

The paper, put together by a team of scientists based in the United Kingdom and Italy, also underscored the need for healthcare policies to account for the very real possibility of inadequate protective personal equipment (PPE), staff and hospital capacity, aggravated by the increased number of pediatric infections.

15 Nov 2020

Low prevalence of SARS-CoV-2 specific antibodies in Lubbock, Texas

A recent study published in the Journal of Primary Care and Community Health has assessed the prevalence of antibodies developed specifically against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) in front-line workers in Lubbock, Texas. According to the study findings, immunoglobulin G (IgG)-specific anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies have been detected in only 0.73% of the participants.

11 Nov 2020

New model for predicting colon cancer risk in average risk individuals

Regenstrief Institute and Indiana University School of Medicine research scientists have developed and tested one of the first U.S.-based models to predict personal risk for advanced precancerous polyps and colon cancer in average risk individuals.

10 Nov 2020

Stay-at-home orders during COVID-19 pandemic may have a dangerous side effect

The social isolation brought on by stay-at-home orders (SAHO) issued in the early phase of the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic may have a deadly and dangerous side effect: an increase in intentional penetrating injuries, especially firearm violence, that has remained at high levels even as stay-at-home orders have subsided and as COVID-19 cases are on an upswing.

9 Nov 2020

Study of SARS-CoV-2 antibodies in >5,000 healthcare workers

To address this, Daniel J Cooper and his team of researchers conducted a prospective seroepidemiological study to systematically evaluate specific risk factors for healthcare workers. They used a SARS-CoV-2 immunoassay and analyzed the risk factors for seropositivity using multivariate logistic regression.

9 Nov 2020

Health workers with religious beards experiencing professional discrimination amid COVID-19, UK study finds

A new study conducted by researchers across the UK has looked at how male health workers with religious beards have been affected by workplace practices during the pandemic. The researchers from Stepping Hill Hospital in Stockport, UK, sought to determine some of the effects on male healthcare workers who had been asked to remove their beards in light of personal protective equipment (PPE) policies, particularly strict mask fit-testing stipulations.

8 Nov 2020

Providing the best psychiatric care within a safe environment during COVID-19 pandemic

The very heart of inpatient care for psychiatric patients is socialization, group therapy, shared meals, and a standard two people per room. Then COVID-19 hit with the accompanying public health warnings to isolate, socially distance, and wear masks.

4 Nov 2020

Zinc-embedded polyamide fabrics are effective in absorbing and inactivating SARS-CoV-2

An international team of scientists has recently demonstrated that zinc-embedded polyamine fibers can effectively absorb and inactivate human respiratory viruses, including influenza A virus and severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). Thus, a face mask or other personal protective equipment (PPE) made from this fiber is expected to provide better protection against viral transmission.

4 Nov 2020

‘Is this worth my life?’: Traveling health workers decry COVID care conditions

David Joel Perea called from Maine, Vermont, Minnesota and, ultimately, Nevada, always with the same request: "Mom, can you send tamales?" Dominga Perea would ship them overnight.

4 Nov 2020

Infection prevention practices during COVID-19 result in shorter hospital stays for moms, babies

New infection prevention practices implemented during the coronavirus pandemic have resulted in significantly shorter hospital stays for mothers and their babies, according to investigators at Cedars-Sinai, with no changes in the rates of cesarean deliveries, complications or poor outcomes.

3 Nov 2020

‘His lies are killing my neighbors’: Swing-state health workers try to defeat Trump

Dr. Chris Kapsner intubated his first COVID-19 patient — a 47-year-old man who arrived short of breath at an emergency room in Minnesota's Twin Cities — back in April.

2 Nov 2020

PPE News and Research

Analysis of social media messages reveals struggles of care home staff during COVID-19 first wave

HIV-related health services in Thailand during COVID-19 pandemic

FDA issues guidance on use of dry heat to support reuse of certain respirators

New CDC report describes COVID-19 in NYC in early spring

KHN’s ‘What the Health?’: Transition troubles mount as COVID spreads

These front-line workers could have retired. They risked their lives instead.

People with learning disabilities are more likely to die from coronavirus

SARS-CoV-2 deactivation on surfaces in 30 seconds with a copper paste

Anger after North Dakota Governor asks COVID-positive health staff to stay on job

Strategizing pediatric healthcare preparedness for the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic

Low prevalence of SARS-CoV-2 specific antibodies in Lubbock, Texas

New model for predicting colon cancer risk in average risk individuals

Stay-at-home orders during COVID-19 pandemic may have a dangerous side effect

Study of SARS-CoV-2 antibodies in >5,000 healthcare workers

Health workers with religious beards experiencing professional discrimination amid COVID-19, UK study finds

Providing the best psychiatric care within a safe environment during COVID-19 pandemic

Zinc-embedded polyamide fabrics are effective in absorbing and inactivating SARS-CoV-2

‘Is this worth my life?’: Traveling health workers decry COVID care conditions

Infection prevention practices during COVID-19 result in shorter hospital stays for moms, babies

‘His lies are killing my neighbors’: Swing-state health workers try to defeat Trump

Achieving and maintaining ISO 27001 and BS 10012 certifications

Expanding research and clinical options for children with cancer

Examining how pain could play a direct protective role in the gut

Latest News