As noted authorities like the Muppets have told us:
"One of these things is not like the other,
One of these things just doesn't belong..."
On the left, how to do it.
On the right, how NOT to do it.
As seen again even better here. (It's a bigger pic, you should go there, really.)
*(Names changed here out of sheer embarrassment at this spectacle.)
Nurse Intelligent, on the left, is wearing full head-to-toe protection from Ebola and/or infectious matter, including a respirator or HEPA filtration set up somewhere under that head cover with faceplate.
Nurse Future Ebola Victim, on the right, has no coverage of much of her face, hair, or shoes (the linked NBC News article has a better view of both, head to toe) so blood-flecked cough spray, vomit splatter, diarrhea, or simple dripping blood from the patient or splashing onto the floor will contaminate her face or hair, where it can run into her eyes, nose, or mouth, underneath the non-compliant simple mask she's wearing, or soak into her street tennis shoes, and then be tracked everywhere she goes.
The hospital cafeteria.
The NY subway.
Home to her family.
Etc.
Unfortunately, both were suited up for a photo op to demonstrate their hospital's preparedness for handling Ebola.(Pray you get the nurse on the left.)
And these idiots not only posed to demonstrate their hospital's preparedness, they're proud of it! (FACEPALM.)
One nurse with a documented competence, and one nurse with less sense than what God gives to jackasses in the barnyard. Represent, sisters.
(Word to your mother, Nurse Cupcake, this isn't cosplay, and the details are the difference between going home safely, and slow, lingering, horrible death from an incurable disease.)
Compare and contrast this with what it looks like done right. So either Nurse FEV is terminally stupid, or her co-workers just don't like her, and didn't bother to hook her up enough to save her life in the dressing process.
Do we get it yet, boys and girls??
Of course not. Because if the word was getting out, you wouldn't see this sort of assclownery on national news, in front of God and everybody.
*(Somebody may write or email Nurse Cupcake, and let her know her ass is showing. They may even tell her they found out about it because I was being mean to her on my blog. I do this because I'm not going to cover for life-threatening acts of stupid, and I Yell Because I Care. Smarten up, campers. You're not in nursing school any more, so there aren't any free mistakes. If the only thing hurt is your feelings, count your blessings.)
10 comments:
I worked seven years in a 360 bed critical care hospital as a HVAC mechanic. I maintained the negative isolation rooms for these infectious patients.
Once the patient numbers exceed the isolation rooms,the hospitals will not be able to provide care. Tents will go up in parking lots. The staff will be working overtime and support staff (like cooks, housekeepers and HVAC mechanics) will not show up for work.
The next step will be quarentines.
No mention of the decontamination process when they go to remove their Hazmat. If they just pull it off and throw it in the hamper, people will die.
I've been thinking about blood donations. What is the probability that someone infected with Ebola would donate blood within a few days of exposure to the virus? Is it possible/probable that whatever testing done on the bag of blood donated would not detect the subject's very recent exposure/infection?
Could you just imagine what a CF it would be if that contaminated blood, and its various components (e.g platelets, plasma) made it into the bodies of several others?
I doubt anyone here is testing donated blood for Ebola.
The history of screwing up that aspect of healthcare here is replete with unbelievable levels of official stupidity beyond the scope of this blog.
Rest assured that once they successfully infect a few thousand people at risk, they'll get right on that.
Fortunately, the window from onset of symptoms to taken out of the gene pool makes that a narrow window, and the presence of a fever would hopefully screen them out of making a successful donation.
Provided they didn't take Tylenol before showing up to donate.
@Emily
I was frankly too afraid to dig into their clinical incompetencies any further, for fear of what else I might find.
IMHO, when your staff can't even get a photo op right, your hospital isn't ready for prime time in any sense, and this is certainly just the tip of the iceberg of their incompetence.
And they're one of the front line hospitals for NYC.
Concerning "what it looks like done right", Dr. "intelligent" Richard Besser doesn't have an tight seal around his goggles. There's a near-centimeter gap at the lower corner of each eye.
The goggles don't have to be sealed, just splash resistant.
You don't need a gasproof seal, just something that'll keep bloody sputum and fluid splashes out of your eyes.
More sealed is better if possible, but a perfect seal is not required.
Wide open to everything is a total fail.
Aesop
If the time period between initial exposure to being symptomatic is in the neighborhood of several days to a few weeks, I would think it quite probable a person with Ebola who is not symptomatic could donate blood.
Unquestionably the latent period is the danger time.
And yes, that's measured in weeks.
As I said, as soon as it becomes a massive catastrophe, they'll get right onto that.
Aesop, you have talent for writing. I don't envy your exposure in the ED over the next months, so I hope you protect yourself well and I look forward to your continued posts.
I followed the link to the article with 2 more pictures, and the text under one of the photos says: "Bellevue Hospital nurse Belkys Fortune, left, and Teressa Celia, Associate Director of Infection Prevention and Control, pose in protective suits in an isolation room during a demonstration of procedures for possible Ebola patients."
So, one of them (Associate Director of Infection Prevention and Control) is either a doctor or some kind of a nurse supervisor, I would assume.
Whatever the case is, she is just as dumb as the other person, as well as at least one more (who took the pictures), because she cannot fail to see what her buddy is wearing... or neglects to wear.
Honestly, Sir, I believe we are f***ed.
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