A Mukilteo, Washington, furniture factory has stepped forward to make surgical masks and face shields for Providence health care workers after the medical provider asked the public to help produce protective equipment for those on the frontline of the coronavirus pandemic in the face of a global shortage of protective gear.
The Providence 100 Million Mask Challenge, launched Thursday, offered kits of special medical-grade materials to Seattle-area volunteers who could use their own sewing machines to stitch masks for health care providers.
Before Providence had even promoted the initiative, “tens of thousands of volunteers signed up,” said Providence spokesperson Melissa Tizon.
When local furniture factory-owner Jeff Kaas heard about the need, “within less than 48 hours, he converted his furniture factory into a mask making factory, making [personal protective equipment] for us,” said Tizon.
Providence gave Kaas Tailored the materials and designs for a surgical mask and face shield.
“He was also able able to consult his engineering colleagues in other countries to help improve the design,” Tizon said, “so we're really, really happy with the product.”
When Providence physicians taking care of COVID-19 patients received the first batch of locally-produced masks, “they were almost in tears as we were dropping them off, because they just need them so much to take care of the people that they're trying to serve,” said Providence St. Joseph Health chief clinical officer Dr. Amy Compton-Phillips in a video with Kaas about the partnership between the provider and the furniture factory.
Kaas Tailored has posted the surgical mask and face shield specifications on its website for other manufacturers to use.
“We are all about the mission and not about the means. So we shared the information digitally, globally,” Kaas said in the video. He said he has already heard from factories in Holland, Arizona, and St. Louis that want to produce protective equipment using his company’s designs.
The factory is using Providence’s stock of surgical wrap, which is used to protect equipment after it’s sterilized, for the fabric masks. All elective surgeries in Washington state were banned on Thursday, which means providers have extra supplies to divert to coronavirus protection efforts.
Tizon said the locally-made masks will hopefully tide Providence over until the usual distribution network catches up. “They're pretty backed up and far behind,” Tizon said. “The demand around the globe is massive.”
Not all hospitals are prepared to work with homegrown mask producers, Kaas said.
“So far what we're seeing is is a little bit of resistance, I think, on the hospital side to move as quickly as [Providence],” Kaas said in the video – but he said that the factories he knows about are eager to start producing protective equipment if hospitals partner with them.
While Providence has given Kaas all of its medical-grade materials for mask production, there will still be a role for the members of the public who volunteered their time and sewing skills, Tizon said.
The hospital system plans to release instructions for using standard fabric to produce masks for civilians, especially those who have a harder time social distancing, like people living in homeless shelters.
The Kaas Tailored website also has a video for amateurs who want to start sewing masks right away.
"Factory" - Google News
March 23, 2020 at 02:39AM
https://ift.tt/3bmwBsL
Mukilteo furniture manufacturer turns into coronavirus mask factory for local hospitals - KUOW News and Information
"Factory" - Google News
https://ift.tt/2TEEPHn
Shoes Man Tutorial
Pos News Update
Meme Update
Korean Entertainment News
Japan News Update
Bagikan Berita Ini
0 Response to "Mukilteo furniture manufacturer turns into coronavirus mask factory for local hospitals - KUOW News and Information"
Post a Comment