ACUTE CARE, INC. Supports Series – Access to Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) for Healthcare Providers

December 1, 2020

For the next entry in our ACUTE CARE, INC. supports series, we have elected to focus on access to Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) for our healthcare provider colleagues and the teams that support their lifesaving efforts during the pandemic.

While the shortage of PPE was a focal point of concerns at the onset of the COVID-19 crisis, the need for a reliable, adequate, and purpose-appropriate supply of protective equipment (masks, face shields, gowns, gloves, air-purifying respirators) is a continuing concern.

ACUTE CARE, INC. is proud to have partnered with healthcare facilities who regard the protection of their teams as a sacred duty, and have engaged in heroic efforts to ensure that the supply of PPE on hand matches both the current and future needs.

Not every hospital is so fortunate, and not every provider has access to the PPE needed to stay safe.

Two organizations stand out in focusing the nation’s attention on this critical issue.

Get Us PPE is a coalition of physicians, scientists, engineers, technologists, and concerned citizens building the nation’s largest platform for grassroots PPE donations.

From their website: Get Us PPE is a grassroots movement founded by emergency physicians on the front lines of the COVID-19 pandemic. It has grown into the largest nonprofit in the country getting personal protective equipment to those who need it most.
With over 16,000 registered requests for personal protective equipment, Get Us PPE has amassed the largest non-governmental database of PPE shortages in the United States.

ACEP, the American College of Emergency Physicians has, and continues to, advocate for healthcare provider access to PPE, and provide practical strategies for obtaining equipment and advocating for rational and effective governmental policy.

From their website:

What You Can Do:

Ensure that your hospital has contacted your state health departments or emergency management agencies to know of your PPE needs. The Strategic National Stockpile is now distributing PPE to the states.

Send your members of Congress an email urging them to ensure PPE is prioritized for frontline personnel.

Share your state and federal advocacy efforts on social media with the hashtag #FreeThePPE and encourage others to also contact their representatives.

While the concern regarding PPE shortages received a great deal of media attention at the onset of the pandemic and has faded since then, the current spike in cases has placed stress on the system.

CBS posted Supplies of N95 masks running low as COVID-19 surges, which includes this excerpt:

Some health care facilities in the U.S. lack sufficient supplies of face masks as COVID-19 cases surge across the country and manufacturers work overtime to ramp up production of personal protective equipment.

The U.S. on Wednesday set a new high for daily coronavirus cases, with more than 100,000 new infections and at least 16 states also breaking records for the number of patients hospitalized with COVID-19. Thursday saw more than 120,000 cases, a 20% spike in just one day.

Makers of so-called N95 masks — regarded as the most effective tool for protection against airborne droplets — are struggling to keep up with demand from hospitals, nursing homes and other health care facilities, as well as businesses in other sectors that now require them to protect workers and the public.

With healthcare providers placing themselves in harm’s way to care for those affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, they deserve protective equipment that ensures their safety.

ACUTE CARE, INC. supports access to Personal Protective Equipment for these healthcare heroes.

Paul Hudson, FACHE
Chief Operating Officer

ACUTE CARE, INC. Supports Series – Access to Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) for Healthcare Providers

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ACUTE CARE, INC. Supports Series – Access to Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) for Healthcare Providers