{"id":4734,"date":"2020-04-20T05:00:22","date_gmt":"2020-04-20T11:00:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/siever.ca\/kim\/?p=4734"},"modified":"2020-04-21T04:54:32","modified_gmt":"2020-04-21T10:54:32","slug":"alberta-donated-millions-of-ppes-gave-workers-here-poor-quality-ppes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/siever.ca\/kim\/2020\/04\/20\/alberta-donated-millions-of-ppes-gave-workers-here-poor-quality-ppes\/","title":{"rendered":"Alberta donated millions of masks; workers here got poor quality ones"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

On 11 April 2020, the Government of Alberta announced<\/a> that they\u2019d be sending 4.5 million procedural masks, 750,000 N95 masks, 30 million gloves, 87,000 goggles, and 50 ventilators to BC, Ontario, and Qu\u00e9bec.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Less than a week later, a Reddit user going by the name of MutantProgress shared a screenshot of a message from a healthcare worker<\/a> regarding masks that workers at their hospital in Calgary are being asked to wear.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

The information in the screenshot\u2014as well as the ensuing discussion in the comments on the Reddit post\u2014have raised questions about the provincial government\u2019s decision to donate millions of protective equipment to other provinces.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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In the message, this healthcare worker outlines a couple of issues with the masks they and their colleagues are being asked to wear. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

First, instead of receiving a new shipment of masks every day as usual, this hospital received no new masks during a 5-day period. And second, when the new masks finally arrived, they were low quality: they ripped easily and are poor fitting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This message, however, doesn\u2019t seem to be a solitary opinion. Several comments confirmed the general sentiment of this message regarding protective equipment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I\u2019m an RN in the central zone and I can confirm this is true. The masks are terrible, don\u2019t fit properly, have fallen off nurses faces while in patient isolation rooms, and smell really terrible. They\u2019re causing skin irritation, sore throats, and bad headaches. It\u2019s so disappointing that this is what we have to deal with.<\/p>FunctionalChocoholic<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

My girlfriend is a nurse. She confirmed this to me as well. Also complained that the new masks have a noxious chemical odor to them and gave her a headache for her entire shift.<\/p>PFCthrowaway2018<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

I\u2019m an RN in Alberta, and I can confirm these masks are absolutely terrible!! Constantly sliding down your nose, huge gaps at the sides, can\u2019t properly seal the nose so you\u2019re blowing air into your eyes whenever you exhale, and the worst part is they are causing massive issues with skin irritation, throat and lung irritation. On my second shift wearing one my face was swollen and burning within an hour and I could feel my airway constricting, so I had to take it off. Probably half the nurses on my unit have had similar reactions to these masks. Makes me sad that the health and lives of frontline healthcare workers are worth so little to this government.<\/p>NunnersDaG<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

This is true. Our hospital has filed a complaint because the masks are terrible. The elastics break. They pucker at the sides and under the chin and the nose piece doesn\u2019t stay bent. They smell and feel cheap:(. One of my coworkers broke out into hives from wearing it and had to go home. My eyes water from wearing it as if there\u2019s chemicals in it.<\/p>muranogrl95<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Can also confirm. Had a nice mask for one shift, had days off and came back to hear we were down to our last box. Had new ones come in and they are awful! They don’t fit on the face right and leave your cheeks, nose, and any contact rashy. Other nurses I work with stated headaches with the smell. We all hate them but are mandated to wear them for 12 hours.<\/p>jacido<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

One nurse in the South Zone reached out to me on social media and also confirmed these reports.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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And it\u2019s not just nurses. Lindsay Campbell, a family physician in Spruce Grove, offered her own confirmation on the quality of the masks through a tweet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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I can corroborate these testimonies. The new masks are atrocious and do very little to stop droplets as they do not stay on your face. It is a waste of money.<\/p>— Lindsey Campbell MD (@LCampbellMd) April 18, 2020<\/a><\/blockquote>