MAKING YOUR OWN REUSABLE N95 MASK . . . FOR HEALTHCARE WORKERS ON THE FRONT LINES AGAINST COVID-19

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THE ANESTHESIA CONSULTANT

Physician anesthesiologist at Stanford at Associated Anesthesiologists Medical Group

Richard Novak, MD is a Stanford physician board certified in anesthesiology and internal medicine.Dr. Novak is an Adjunct Clinical Professor in the Department of Anesthesiology, Perioperative and Pain Medicine at Stanford University, the Medical Director at Waverley Surgery Center in Palo Alto, California, and a member of the Associated Anesthesiologists Medical Group in Palo Alto, California.
emailrjnov@yahoo.com

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Today’s post demonstrates making a reusable N95 mask from common inexpensive operating room supplies. I’m forwarding the link from Boston Children’s Hospital which instructs anesthesiologist, nurse anesthetist, emergency room, and intensive care unit colleagues, as well as emergency room and ICU nurses, how to make a virus-protective N95 mask if none is available at their hospital.

An N95 mask is essential gear to prevent our healthcare workers from being infected with when caring for COVID-19 patients. The video is posted here.

The required parts are an operating room anesthesia mask and a ventilator in-line bacterial/viral filter:

The mask assembly is held over your face with elastic straps. Instead of elastic straps, one could use anesthesia mask straps as pictured below:

Currently there is a dire shortage of N95 masks in the hospitals hardest hit by COVID-19. This makeshift N95 mask, as demonstrated here, can be an essential part of the personal protective equipment (PPE) needed by frontline healthcare workers during the COVID-19 pandemic.